in_nomine-digest Saturday, October 6 2001 Volume 01 : Number 2404 In this digest: IN> Nuclear Annihilation and the two Psycho Princes IN> RE: In WoD: Garou IN> The Granite Madams Want Snow White's Head IN> Vapula (variant) IN> Sundry matters Re: IN> In honor of a new movie.... IN> Wierd News IN>The Eternal Nightmare IN> [INEWS] Bulletin, Sep. 30 - Oct. 6 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2001 20:36:14 -0400 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: IN> Nuclear Annihilation and the two Psycho Princes My personal opinion... Saminga: WHAT!? KNOCK BEFORE YOU OPEN THE DOOR! KNOCK! Me: Errr sorry sir! I didn't see you playing with your dolls again! Saminga: GOOD! *puts away his Saminga, Laurence, and Princess Lilith action figures as he stuffs the clothes he took off them in a nearby drawer* Me: I just wanted to know your opinions on Nuclear annhilation. Saminga: AGAIN!? Me: errr yes. Saminga: Yes, I like death. I like LOTS of Death infact. In fact I love the idea of EVERY SINGLE LIVING BEING IN THE UNIVERSE being dead. God especially....and yes Laurence and Lilith....Oh Luci... Me: err your drooling sir. Saminga: OF COURSE I AM! Truth be told however I don't like the idea of everyone being dead before I can get enough zombies around me to serve me and my undead legions of doom forthe rest of eternity! I'll get bored! Nukes destroy bodies and death without bodies is like ice cream without cyanide! Me: Err so you don' like nuclear annhilation? Saminga: It's as much Belial's word ALMOST as mine. Mostly the attempts to start a nuclear war are servants of mine or Baal who think I'd be pleased. Frankly I would be and I'll give a distinction to somehow who can wipe out most of humanity certainly...definately a word support too....*wink wink hint hint* but enough bodies need to be saved to build my world of doom. *Saminga pulls out Blandine's action figure* Saminga: Oh Beleth....then we kill them too. That's why the other princes exist you realize. *** Belial: NUKE EM ALL! Hehe oh sure I'd love a Nuclear war and that would heaven real quick but I'm saving the BIG BANG for the end of the universe. Not much real point to doing nuclear warfare if it's going to be the last fire you ever set eh? I tried a few times but again unless humanity survives it's the end of fire and there goes my word... Imagine that, I AM GOD for a few minutes then Poof. Real sucky I gotta tell you that. I'm working with Vapula though to gaurentee survivors with UFOS to help kidnap and make radiation immune humans. Once then my soldies will inherit the Earth and the world will brun like SheoL! Fires forever! Destrcution, rebuilding just to be destroyed again! BRAVO! - -Charlie _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2001 20:45:17 -0400 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: IN> RE: In WoD: Garou [I'm not sure I am here, The problem comes from the underlying philosophical discontinuity between IN, which is that Weird stuff is the preserve of the War and WoD which says that weird stuff is available based entirely on individual belief.] Actually I took note of that but I discovered that if you broaden your horizons large enough there really isn't that much of a discontinuity and the two fit together surprisingly well. [Nothing in the document you are unhappy about breaks the level the Garou operate at. Yes they call Novalis [Or a Jordi/ Novalis metaconcert] Gaia, but that makes a better fit than a major ethereal with powerful followers does on the IN view point.] I disagree here because the Garou serving ethereals seems to fit remarkably well as opposed to them being servants of Heaven. The Garou are preservers of Primal Spirits and embodiments moreso than it seems to be direct "good" Also the Garou being ethereals is directly out of their own admission that they are spirits that have been "enfleshened" though that works with the Grigori too. The Garou are also fairly hostile to Judeo-Christianity (the Black Furies point to the Patriarch as a Weaver spirit though the Revised book says that's wrong) and Heaven traditionally serves law and order over dymanism even as Hell serves Entropy.... Plus with a totem like the Great Trash heap (Bone Gnawer Book) and the Living Spirit of Communism I assume ethereals might at this point be more appropriate than just mythological gods.... [Which leads to the problem that in the WoD the world banking system is run from behind the scenes by multiple different factions [Glasswalkers, Giovanni, etc] who haven't noticed each other and who barely interact. And so on. One might remember that about the only thing the majority of the factions in WoD agree on is there is a major conflict being stage managed by unseen forces behind the curtains.] This isn't actually so difficult to work out really. No one really CONTROLS anything even in the WoD. A Vampire may have dominated the President of the Bank in a city but day to day his Vice President is all Glass Walker kinfolk or his secretary while his shareholders take credit for Giovanni...mostly humans interacting with humans with each supernatura usually able to get what they want because they let things run as humans would run them. [And I prefer something closer to Anita Blake on the interactions between supernaturals.] Oh and how's that? [Occam's Razor shaves well here though. Jordi and Novalis between them symbolise the traits the Garou ascribe to Gaia and are sufficiently supernatural to pull this off. The stand alone route doesn't work well with IN, given the purity crusade etc.] True enough but so does God and the Ethereal Gaia who mothered Kronos and the Titans.....I think Novalis and Jordi would be allied but I felt ignoring an ethereal connection for solely heaven and Hell would be deflaming one game for another. Instead of fusing the two for both's benefit. - -Charlemagne _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2001 01:19:07 -0400 From: "William J. Keith" Subject: IN> The Granite Madams Want Snow White's Head She's partly Snow White, but also Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, and many other examples of the Damsel in Distress. She's every chaste and virtuous maiden who in unjustly imposed hard times soldiers onward, secure in the knowledge that Right will prevail, Evil will be defeated, and all she needs to do is wait... for her Handsome Prince to carry her of to a perfect life of never-ending happiness. This is the kind of thing that really gets the Granite Madams' panties in a twist. For those of you who don't know, the Granite Madams are a society of angels of Stone who happen to prefer the female outlook on life. They also focus on helping women to shed weak stereotypes and take charge of their own lives. So when an Ethereal of this nature flounces down to Earth, be assured that they're not going to put up with it. And because she's landed in this particular beat, the PCs are being drafted. This particular Ethereal is properly the Optimistic flavor of the ubiquitous Damsel in Distress. It's arguable whether she's really sentient, but she has some qualities that can make her very sympathetic. She really is usually to be found in bothersome and difficult situations; she is pious, generally in a European Catholic sort of way; she's sweet and gentle, and sincerely quotes innumerable platitudes about forbearance and patience. She generally prefers a traditional feminine name like Belle or Grace. Now for the downside. Grace got herself into whatever situation she's in -- her m.o. is to appear on Earth with nothing but the clothes on her back, wandering around and looking vaguely lost. She comes up to strangers and asks if they know where her relatives are: she can give reams of information, all of which is detailed but never enough to find anyone. Eventually, she needs a place to stay, and looks for the cheap side of town. She offers labor for her keep (eats and sleeps on a human routine, although she eats very little and doesn't sleep much either). Now then -- beautiful, female, none too bright homeless outsider heads to the bad part of town and offers labor for room and board. You do the math. Once she's there, she waits. She picks up whatever skills are required of her: she knows quite a lot of domestic and janitorial skills, plus a number of less legal skills. All, though, are mundane. The only Song she's known to use with any reliability is the Ethereal Song of Attraction, usually on handsome men. they desire to protect her, generally from her current boss, which leads to a suitably shocking and climactic fight scene, whereupon he whisks her away from all this. Unfortunately, what he whisks her off to is usually not unending Paradise, and so as her nature reasserts itself and manipulates the situation her relationship degrades until she's little better off than where she was before. Throughout all of this, her lack of initiative is remarkable. She is willing to stay with any authority figure or boyfriend who will assert the slightest bit of dominance or show the least bit of emotion. She will work (or worse) for them, see the best in them (making it up, if necessary), and do nothing to relieve her situation until a possible rescuer comes along, even though she admits her "hardship" to anyone who shows a listening ear. The cycle will repeat itself, tempting humans into exploitation, violence, and codependence, until she is sent back to the Marches. The Granite Madams want it fixed. They (a collection of woman veterans, cops, athletes, and other angels that take their feminism seriously) have swooped into town on the hunt -- Grace's last boyfriend abandoned her somewhere around here, and they're asking for the PCs' help in finding her. (Alternatively, the PCs may have reported her, and the Granite Madams are coming to help.) When contact is made, the first order of business is to separate Grace from the human or humans she's fallen in with, who will already have a vested interest in keeping her around, and may even be honestly won over by her charm, simplicity, and virtue. Once the humans are out of the way, the question is how to deal with Grace -- off her? A pious, sweet Ethereal (who wouldn't strike anyway, much less first, and don't think the Madams don't notice that)? Escorting her back to the Marches, and somehow assuring she remains there? Or trying to get her to break free of her cycle of codependence? This latter route will require somehow integrating "Damsel who can darned well save herself" characteristics into her basic personality... if you can do it. Should you choose this route, the Granite Madams, being after all angels of Stone, whose purpose is to strengthen others, may very well give you their help -- in their own inimitable way, of course. Have fun! William ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 06 Oct 2001 16:56:57 +0800 From: Manny Nepomuceno Subject: IN> Vapula (variant) Hey, Another variant. These guys just won't leave me alone... ;) Manny Neps http://www.geocities.com/angeloffools/ Vapula Lilim Princess of Technology The world Needs what we have to offer. Manifesting on Earth as a beautiful but cold woman, Vapula works hard to make humanity dependent on its technology. Think "power marketer". You wouldn't be far wrong: while Nybbas runs Hell's equivalent of a marketing directorate, Vapula handles R&D...but she does a lot of selling. Archangel Jean was handed the keys to the Symphony, effectively shutting out Vapula and her minions from access to its secrets. That leaves experimentation, something that Vapula has gotten extremely good at: it's not unknown for disfavored Servitors to be "volunteered" for product development or testing. She's been known to smile encouragingly as her minions are strapped to the rack, and then to laugh hysterically while rebuilding their Forces into new, ever-stranger, configurations. Where experimentation cannot suffice, the Princess of Technology lies, tricks, and seduces others to gain access to technological secrets. Rumor has it that she's even gotten the better of Jean this way, playing on Jean's well-known...fondness...for Lilith. Lucifer and the her fellow Princes like her well enough (with a few exceptions). They'd like to see more things that will encourage humans into selfish, destructive behavior: things like television, automobiles, explosives, chemical weapons, and the like. Actually, humans created all these things, but Vapula claims part of the credit. It earns points with the rest of the Descending Lowerarchy. Hellish technology notwithstanding, most of her things actually _work_ -- all the better to snare humans with. Even Lucifer has been spotted carrying her latest PDA and speaking into her latest cellular phone. Vapula's forges in Hell are the source of most infernal artifacts. Baal and Belial have shown a great deal of interest in Vapula's work, primarily with a view to creating more (and better) implements of destruction. For her part, the Princess of Technology delivers what they ask, and smiles as she sees the growing dependence in the eyes of her fellow Demon Princes. Dissonance Vapula's dissonance conditions remain unchanged from canon. Attunements Band Attunements Balseraphs: unchanged from canonical attunement. Djinn: unchanged from canonical attunement. Calabim: unchanged from canonical attunement. Habbalah (partially restricted): Vapula grants her Habbalah special mood rings which reflect the emotional state of the nearest person. In addition, her Habbalah are granted an additional emotion to inflict on a person: Wanting. Other Bands may only receive the artifact upon taking this attunement. Lilim (partially restricted): On making eye contact, a Daughter of Vapula can tell what technology a person Needs. All of Vapula's Lilim carry a high-tech cellular phone, with special interfaces that can accept any technology that they wish to hook up to the phone. The phone also never loses its signal, nor does it need to recharge. It's not unknown for some of these phones to be artifacts containing the Celestial Song of Tongues, either. Other Bands may only receive the artifact upon taking this attunement. Shedim (partially restricted): Shedim of Technology may possess, as a host, any technological object which a previous host has used. In the rare event that they find themselves hostless, they may possess the special artifact Vapula gives them: a PDA. The PDA is voice-activated, learns handwriting, and has an unbelievably long battery life -- all the better to snare unwary humans. Other Bands may only receive the artifact upon taking this attunement. Impudites (partially restricted): Vapula's Impudites gain a bonus to their Fast-Talk skill equal to their Ethereal Forces when attempting to sell a technological product to someone they have Charmed. In addition, they are given special Essence-sensing glasses (always personalized to the Impudite's vessel and fashion sense, but they most commonly appear as wraparound shades) which let them see the Essence around them. Anyone wearing the glasses can see the Essence in anyone within a number of feet equal to his Celestial Forces. There are rumors that some Impudites have received contact lenses with these abilities, but that's just hearsay for now. Other Bands may only receive the artifact upon taking this attunement. Servitor Attunements Invention Unchanged from canonical attunement. Special Features On a successful Will roll, a Servitor of Vapula may imbue an object with any abilities they want. Both these abilities and their effects vanish within (Celestial Forces) days -- more than enough time to close the deal. For example, a Servitor may grant an ordinary laptop a high-speed, wireless connection to the Internet. After a few days, not only will the connection be gone, but the files viewed and downloaded will be inaccessible on the computer's hard drive and the computer itself will need to be replaced. Failing the Will roll will make the item immune to the use of this attunement for 24 hours! GMs should charge Essence for difficult or near-impossible features. Distinctions Knight of Combustion Unchanged from canonical Distinction. Inspector Unchanged from canonical Distinction. Baron of Gremlins Vapula's Barons can create a tiny defect in any technological object they touch. It will fail mysteriously after another 10 (minus the demon's Celestial Forces) uses, creating the Need for a replacement. Only the most thorough examination (GM's discretion) has a chance of spotting it before then. Relations Vapula maintains a very, very good working relationship with her former Servitor, Nybbas, who reciprocates. He likes what she does and what she has to offer. Kronos likes her as well, as human dependence on technology is an excellent path to Fate. The only Superiors she actively dislikes are Saminga, who doesn't think much of her work, and Malphas, who she detests for reasons of her own (most take note that Malphas and Saminga are both Shedim, and that, even for a Princess, old habits die hard). And what of Mother? Lilith, for her part, doesn't think much of her upstart Daughter. Vapula's work involves enslaving humanity to its technology, something that goes against the grain of Lilith's Word. Still, Lucifer likes Vapula well enough, and Lilith's lack of a real power base keeps her from directly threatening the Princess of Technology. Allied: Nybbas, Kronos (Nybbas and Kronos are allied with Vapula) Associated: none (Baal and Belial are associated with Vapula) Hostile: Malphas, Saminga (Saminga and Lilith are hostile to Vapula) Rites: Vapula's rites remain unchanged from canon. Chance of Invocation: 3 Invocation Modifiers: +1 An iMac +2 A Pentium III +3 A PlayStation 2 +4 A Pentium IV +5 A G4 +6 An X-box ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 06 Oct 2001 16:56:15 +0800 From: Manny Nepomuceno Subject: IN> Sundry matters Hey, Sorry for compressing all these responses into one message, but the other one I'm sending is already a bit lengthy... Re: the Songs of Blood Thanks for the feedback (and praise). Thanks to Michael Walton for the heads-up about the Songs of Blood already existing in canon...to be quite honest, though, I'm stumped as to what to call the Song. ("The Songs of Macbeth" just don't cut it, somehow). I think I'll just tag them a variant of the Songs of Blood and leave it at that, unless someone has a better suggestion? Re: Michael the Elohite Again, thanks for the praise. Jeffery, you're welcome to take him and use him as your AA of Warfare. If you need more War attunements, you're welcome to use anything from another AA of War on my site: http://www.geocities.com/angeloffools/stuff/dragonlance/kiri-jolith.html Of course, I'd also like to see others' takes on an Elohite Michael... :) You already have a lot of great suggestions for names, so I'll hold off for now. Re: Laurence's Swords and Baal's Bullets I love these writeups. Cookies to Moe and the Reverend for them, as well as to the folks who wrote up Swords for the minor Superiors. Re: The Granite Madams Ditto. Excellent seed. Re: James Walker's stuff Great Horror Month pieces. :) That's it for now. I hope this message is under 2k. ;) Manny Neps http://www.geocities.com/angeloffools/ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 06 Oct 2001 22:41:37 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: Re: IN> In honor of a new movie.... >Subject: in_nomine-digest V1 #2399 >Date: Wed, Oct 3, 2001, 4:45 AM > IN> In honor of a new movie.... "...For many long years, I have pondered what I might do, should the Great Ring come into my hands..." As have many others - and we know what happens if too many people dream about something: THE ONE RING Primal Spirit CORPOREAL FORCES: 3 Strength: 1 Agility: 11 ETHEREAL FORCES : 4 Intelligence: 4 Precision: 12 CELESTIAL FORCES: 5 Will: 12 Perception: 8 Songs: Emotion(All)/6. Artifacts: The One Ring is Bound into a Magic Ring (Digest #2345). Affinities (RII p105-108): Gold/6, Humans(As Animals, but affecting humans and inspired by the dreams of animals about humans)/3. Servants: the Nine, the Four[!], all at level/6. Discords: Fear(Volcanoes/6), Bound/6; if the Magic Ring is destroyed subtract this Discord from The One Ring's Trauma rolls. (Remember that Ethereal spirits lose a Force every time they fail a trauma roll). The One Ring has no link to Sauron's original Ring; instead, the dreams inspired by Tolkien's books have formed it. Nearly a decade older than the other Rings (courtesy of The Hobbit) The One Ring ambushed the other Rings as they appeared, attempting to can control of them. Although the Three were able to avoid him (and even now not all of the Dwarven Rings have formed), the One Ring now rules the others, and can use their Affinities with their essence. The One Ring has no particular desire to "return" to Sauron, as he's proved an unreliable Ring Lord. On the contrary, if Sauron forges new rings, power will be drained from the ethereal versions; The One Ring will frantically assist anyone who can destroy Sauron - and not care whether it can control them or not. Of course, The One Ring has a MAJOR image problem, and persuading a wearer that it is actually one of the 'good guys' could take some doing - especially given the screams The Three will raise if they suspect anything! The One Ring does want to fulfil it's verse; however the non-existence of Mordor makes this difficult. As such it will settle for controlling the other Rings (who must be wielded by members of the appropriate race - Narya really annoys The One Ring) and watching for a chance to rebuild Mordor. Heaven help anyone foolish enough to open a Mordor theme park... THE NINE RINGS Primal Spirits CORPOREAL FORCES: 1 Strength :1 Agility: 3 ETHEREAL FORCES : 1 Intelligence:1 Precision: 3 CELESTIAL FORCES: 3 Will: :3 Perception: 9 Songs: Emotion(All)/3-5. Artifacts: Each Ring is Bound into a Magic Ring (Digest #2345). Affinities: (RII p105-108): Snow/4 to Snow/6. Discords: All are Servants to the One; Fear(Fire)/4, all bar the greatest have Fear(Water)/1. Bound/6; if the Magic Ring is destroyed subtract this Discord from The Ring's Trauma rolls. Special Abilities: As part of their Affinity, the Nine can form weapons out of ice; these tend to strip flesh from their wielders hands, so long term wearers of these Rings tend to have carry hilts with them which the blade can form from. The weapons cost CD essence have CD Power; they last until struck by sunlight or fire. The Nine have each formed an ice gem to decorate their magic Ring. They desire only to spread terror, realising that Fear is the source of their power. Many dream of sitting on Beleth's hand, although she is unlikely to care about such minor spirits. THE FOUR RINGS Primal Spirits CORPOREAL FORCES: 1 Strength:2 Agility: 2 ETHEREAL FORCES : 4 Intelligence:4 Precision: 12 CELESTIAL FORCES: 4 Will: 4 Perception:12 Songs: Greed(All)/4-6. Artifacts: Each Ring is Bound into a Magic Ring (Digest #2345). Affinities: (RII p105-108): Jewels/2-5; Gold/6. Discords: All are Servants to the One; Fear(Dragons)/3; Bound/6; if the Magic Ring is destroyed subtract this Discord from The Ring's Trauma rolls. There should be Seven Dwarven Rings; however the lack of dreams about them combined with the knowledge that 3 were destroyed by dragons means that only 4 have formed. The release of the LotR film may be sufficient to allow the creation of the other three. Each existing Dwarven Ring has arranged for a gem to be set in their Magic Ring. VILYA Primal Spirit CORPOREAL FORCES: 4 Strength: 4 Agility :12 ETHEREAL FORCES : 5 Intelligence: 9 Precision :11 CORPOREAL FORCES: 4 Will : 6 Perception :10 Songs: Healing(All)/6, Empathy(All)/6. Artifacts: Vilya is Bound into a Magic Ring (Digest #2345). Affinities: (RII p105-108): Rain/6, Storms/6. Discords: Fear(The One)/3; Bound/6; if the Magic Ring is destroyed subtract this Discord from Vilya's Trauma rolls. Vilya is currently wielded by an unknown elf in Faerie; the location of the ring into which it is Bound is unknown. Vilya's Magic Ring is made of gold and set with a large sapphire. NENYA Primal Spirit CORPOREAL FORCES: 3 Strength: 4 Agility : 8 ETHEREAL FORCES : 5 Intelligence: 9 Precision :11 CORPOREAL FORCES: 5 Will : 8 Perception :12 Songs: Harmony(All)/6, Empathy(All)/6. Artifacts: Nenya is Bound into a Magic Ring (Digest #2345). Affinities: (RII p105-108): Water/6, Moon/6. Discords: Fear(The One)/3; Bound/6; if the Magic Ring is destroyed subtract this Discord from Nenya's Trauma rolls. Nenya is currently wielded by an unknown elf in Faerie; the location of the ring into which it is Bound is unknown. Nenya's Magic Ring is made of titanium and set with a glowing white diamond. NARYA Primal Spirit CORPOREAL FORCES: 4 Strength: 12 Agility : 4 ETHEREAL FORCES : 4 Intelligence:8 Precision : 8 CORPOREAL FORCES: 5 Will : 10 Perception : 6 Songs: Fire(All)/6. Artifacts: Vilya is Bound into a Magic Ring (Digest #2345). Affinities: (RII p105-108): Fire/6, Sun/6. Discords: Fear(The One)/1; Bound/6; if the Magic Ring is destroyed subtract this Discord from Narya's Trauma rolls. Attunements: Fire Pact - Nenya may grant the Sorcery Attunement to members of the Ignis cabal. Alone of the Three, Narya wanders the Corporeal plane, passing from Sorcerer to Sorcerer, seeking the champion who will destroy The One Ring. Things could get interesting if a certain Seraph of Destiny gets his hands on Narya, as Narya has no interest in hunting Sauron! Narya has a rich red gem set into it's Magic Ring. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- James. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2001 10:59:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Ryan M Roth Subject: IN> Wierd News Hello All: These are some things that caught my attention, so I'd thought I'd share. ************************************************************************ Saminga or Eli? You be the judge.... ************************************************************************ A judge in Belgium is allowing 28 human corpses to go on show as part of a controversial art exhibition. Koerperwelten, or Bodyworld, consists of embalmed dead bodies cut open to show what's inside. A butcher complained to the judge that the exhibition in an Anderlecht abattoir was bad for business. He said the exhibition, which includes the bodies of two pregnant women, with their unborn children, was an attack on his private and family life and on butchers in general. But Brussels Judge de Hemptinne rejected the claims. "The proximity of dead bodies is never an attack on family life, or nobody could live near a cemetery anymore. "There is no link between the reputation of the neighbourhood and the exhibition and it's not clear how the exhibition would harm the butcher's reputation," he told the court. Bodyworld's German creator Gunther von Hagens has used bodies from morgues and research institutes across Europe. The Berlin leg of the tour was so popular its venue had to open 24 hours a day. A exhibition is also planned for London. http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_416874.html?menu=news.quirkies ********************************************************************* Does anybody else hear a faint Kobalic chuckle? ********************************************************************* A giant snake in Brazil is being named after Osama bin Laden. The 120-inch boa constrictor is believed to have eaten a number of pets in Rio de Janeiro. The locals and firemen who captured it decided on the name because it was difficult to capture and it is the main suspect over the missing animals. Neilda Luzia da Costa called the fire department for help after discovered Osama eating her pet dog. It needed eight firemen to capture the slithering reptile and put it into a van. The 35-year-old housemaid says: "We decided so [on the name] because it was so difficult to capture and also because it is the main suspect in a number of cases of missing pets in the neighbourhood." She adds: "There has always been snakes in my yard, but never a giant boa constrictor." The snake bin Laden was taken to a zoo in Niteroi, near Rio reports Odia.com. Fireman Marcos Silva says the snake will take up to 12 days to digest the dog. http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_416855.html?menu=news.quirkies ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2001 10:50:54 -0700 From: Charles E Smith Subject: IN>The Eternal Nightmare The Servitors of Nightmares are known for being innovative when it comes to crafting horrific visions for their victims to suffer nightly, and some are known for invading the dreamscapes of the technophobic to visit scientific horrors upon them. However, the demons of Nightmares aren't really techno-savvy themselves, and this is to be expected given the hostility between their Dread Princess and Prince Vapula of Technology. However, there have always been free thinkers, even among the demons (indeed, some would claim that the demons were the original free thinkers), and Carchemish is one of them. This demon has been around for several centuries, having fledged as a Calabite during the Purity Crusades. He saw the mass demolition of dreamscapes and Ethereals in that conflict, and he saw it as a waste. Oh, the destruction wasn't the problem. The problem was that people's lives were not being destroyed. Uriel was good at slaughtering, but he lacked perspective. Carchemish decided that there had to be a better way to ruin people's lives. Frustrated, Carchemish turned his attention to dreamscapes. Mortal dreamscapes were the best target, of course. The problem with them (besides nosy Servitors of Blandine) is that mortals wake up eventually and the dreamscapes fade. There had to be some way to drag out the dreamscapes, but Carchemish didn't know how. He puzzled over this until the ninth century, until the answer finally came to him. It wasn't the dreamscape that should be focused on, but the dreamer! Forget modifying the dream, instead follow the nebulous link between the dreamscape and the mind of the mortal dreamer. The key lay in finding that elusive link. That's where rank came into play. Carchemish spent the next five centuries currying favor with his Dread Princess, doing the jobs no one else would do. He fought cautiously, ambushing angels of Dreams (he picked on the recruits and trainees-especially Malakim) and built up a reputation as a powerful warrior. He earned Songs and attunements. Eventually, he made for himself by invading and warping one of the protected dreamscapes of Dreams, the ones that Blandine considers to be *her* personal space. For his work, he earned the wrath of Blandine but the favor of Beleth and his Distinction as a Knight of Restlessness. It is said that Carchemish attempted to seize control of the back door of Heaven, but in reality, he bullied a fledgling Shedite into scouting the path for him. The Corruptor had a little run-in with Blandine's Malakim and got soul-killed, so Carchemish never made the attempt. From then on, Carchemish spent all his spare time trying to find the link between dreamers and their dreamscapes. He consorted with the remaining pagan deities and Ethereals, especially with the Unseelie Court and the Furies. It took him a while, but then he hit upon an idea. He used his rank to start using members of the other Bands in Beleth's service as test-subjects, using their Resonances to see how far mortals can be pushed. His experiments were not always looked kindly upon once Vapula came to power. It reminded some demons of his work and Beleth seemed poised to stamp down hard on the ambitious Destroyer...until success occured! Carchemish discovered that the key to prolonged nightmares lay in the Impudite of Nightmares attunement. The Calabite Knight convinced Beleth that just by tweaking the resonance so that the Impudite's resonance increased the duration of the nightmare instead of granting a bonus to the Impudite's resonance use against the victim. He presented fourteen centuries of research and Beleth, intrigued, selected a fledgling Impudite for the task. During the experiment, the nightmare of the victim not only was more intense, but also lasted longer. That's when step two was employed. Carchemish used the Song of Forbidding to hold the Impudite in place, then gave it a relic containing the Song of Forbidding (an amulet). The amulet requires the Impudite to continue to apply its' resonance whenever the dreamscape starts to fade and maintains the earlier Forbidding against any movement. In effect, this has created an eternal nightmare, locking the dreamer into an unconscious state on Earth. Beleth was so pleased that she made Carchemish a Captain of Headhaunters and ordered him to find ways to mass-produce this experiment. Word has not reached Vapula yet, but when it does, anger might be expected. - -------------------------------------------------------- Carchemish Calabite of Nightmares Captain of Headhaunters Corporeal Forces: 6 Strength: 12 Agility: 12 Ethereal Forces: 6 Intelligence: 12 Precision: 12 Celestial Forces: 1 Will: 2 Perception: 2 Attunements: Calabite of Nightmares, Terror, Dream Walking, Captain of Headhaunters Songs: Ethereal Forbidding/5, Corporeal Forbidding/4, Ethereal Nightmares/6, Celestial Nightmares/6, Ethereal Motion/4, Ethereal Location/4, Etehreal Draining/6, Celestial Motion/4, Ethereal Entropy/5. Skills: Fighting/6, Small Weapons/4, Large Weapons/4, Singing/5. Vessel/Role: None Appearance: A rather dimunitive Calabite at 4'2", with deep-red skin, crimson curved horns, and black eyes. He sports a goatee and a moustache, and his broad chest is ridged. His arms are corded muscle with spiky ridges, and his legs are squat and compact like the rest of him. He wears baggy black pantaloons and a black vest that leaves his chest bare. Personality: Carchemish is a snarling, arrogant bastard at first glance (a.k.a. your typical Calabite), but he is far more intelligent than most of his breed. He long ago realized that tough head-bashers only go so far, so he uses the image of his Band as a shield to hide his intellect and cunning behind. He is very ambitious, but smart enough to appear to be a dumb and snarling Destroyer. ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2001 15:26:43 -0400 From: "William J. Keith" Subject: IN> [INEWS] Bulletin, Sep. 30 - Oct. 6 This weekly series presents news articles from the real world in relation to an In Nomine universe. It is purely my nickel and not at all canon, though every attempt is made to ensure that it is canon. Several storylines are continued from previous week(s). - ----------------- Preparations for housing, feeding, and otherwise supporting possibly millions of Afghan refugees got underway this week(Daily Collegian, 10/1, p. 6). Marc continues to send in angels with the food and supply convoys from the World Food Program; Christopher is sending in angels though the United Nations Childrens' Fund. Some materials have been "diverted;" guards are requested to be on the lookout for Valeforians just trying to steal badly-needed supplies, as well as human thieves looking for profit and supplies. In the main, though, angels of Trade are checking the numbers (New York Times, 10/5 A1) and the infrastructure (NYT 10/5 B3), and trying to establish long-term Roles for use in effecting trade structure in the region for the future. Many other Archangels will want Servitors in the refugee camps, as will Demon Princes. This is one area of the world where the demons will doubtless have considerable odds going in; once the camps are established (and some smaller ones already are), these places will be breeding grounds for Hellsworn, ripe opportunities to embitter a generation of an entire country, and pits of disease, hunger, violence, lust, fear, and death. In fact, angels sent to do what they can and must may very well despair. How would you and your PCs react? It's rare that you see celebration of Heaven's victories in the world news, but somewhere Christopher turns a page and smiles: the new vision of fatherhood is being lauded among the dead and living alike as widows and children speak in the aftermath of terror(NYT 10/1 A19). Chris' history isn't all good news though -- the use of child soldiers (NYT 10/2 A1) may well be rising. It's not the usual venue for most angels of Children, but it could well be one of their most important ones in the near future. The struggle between Freedom and Nightmares continues. Lilith is making headway in the United States, with commentators and other talking heads generally landing on the side of civil liberties(NYT 10/1 A25) and earning themselves a Freedom bodyguard; on the other hand, Beleth's brand of paranoia is gaining ground in Central Europe with some well-timed manipulations of the public voice(NYT 10/4 A12). Both sides are investigating the possibility that a Greyhound bus crash after a knife attack on the driver (NYT 10/4 A16) was sponsored by demons of Nightmares in order to spread the aura of distrust of public transportation to more means of travel. Lightning and Technology science-watchers are on alert after a surprising amount of information was garnered by human researchers from a genetic study of Yersinia pestis, the Black Death. Scientists identified suites of genes meant to transform the bacterium from a harmless stomach bug in rats to one with the added capabilities of aerial transmission, human infection, exceeding virulence(over 20 suites alone for rapid deployment in the body), and suppression of genes for its earlier role. Furthermore, scientists were able to conclude that the genes were added in rapid succession sometime between 1,500 and 20,000 years ago. Are human scientists at all going to entertain the possibility of artificial production? Unlikely, but the secrecy of Makatiel's tampering must be preserved. In minor news: Can justice be held together in the midst of an international crisis? Angels of Judgment and Faith are being assigned to see to it that claims of fairness under Islamic law are to be upheld in the widely-watched trial of aid workers charged with preaching Christianity in Afghanistan. Alaemon seems to be looking forward to the prospect of a covert ops war as boosting his Word; Michaelites are not worrying a great deal about such strengthening, and are joined in this opinion by Baalites. Nevertheless, a few angels of War may be being dispatched to take out demons of Secrets trying to make the fog of war even murkier. In this, they may be aided indirectly by demons of the Media, wanting their flashy footage. Seemingly a small thing in the world, yet of a certain symbolic value to both Superiors: Alexandira and its Library. Still today, Yves is seeking to restore the Library to the symbol of learning and cooperation that it once was, even if it limited in its world-class scope and positioned at a new site; Kronos, on the other hand, is mercilessly grinding away at the city itself and the support for the Library. (NYT 10/2 A8) It's a job about hope -- building it or crushing it -- for celestials serving Destiny and Fate. - ------------- Eli Watch: Routine questioning of angels of Creation has determined that Eli spent several days in the Muir Woods National Monument in the United States this week. His current whereabouts are unknown. Gabriel Watch: Gabriel was not seen on Earth this week. There has, however, been a sudden resurgence of the usual rumors of a fiery prophetess in Hell, this time walking through the battles of Gehenna. (See Gabriel's writeup in Superiors 3 for more on this.) - ------------- William ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #2404 ********************************