in_nomine-digest Sunday, November 3 2002 Volume 01 : Number 2844 In this digest: Re: IN> Fallen Superiors and Such Re: IN> Dark Humor Productions Presents: Fate, Lies, and the Bals eraphic Way IN> How Canon is Canon? IN> [INverse] Litheroy (part 2) Re: IN> The Fall of Kobal? IN> Wisdom as an attribute IN> [INverse] Litheroy ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 01 Nov 2002 22:10:13 -0800 From: Kish Subject: Re: IN> Fallen Superiors and Such sirea@softhome.net wrote: > Laurence: Was not at the Fall. Was he created by Uriel? Yes. > Dominic: Was he the Angel of Judgment before the Fall, or was he always the > AA of Judgment? Angel of Judgment. > He became the AA of Judgment after the Fall if he was the > Angel of Judgment before. If he was though, who did he serve if anyone? Unknown. Speculation: Yves, Uriel...or Lucifer. > > Novalis: Was she only the Angel of Flowers at the Fall, or was she always > AA? Angel. > If not, who did she serve? Unknown. > Baal: Okay, what -was- he before the Fall? Was he just the Angel of Valor, > or was he in fact the Archangel? Archangel. > Who made him? God. He was the third-born Seraph. > Haagenti: Was a hellborn gremlin, became the Prince of Gluttony later. Created by Meserach. > Magog: Okay. He was a Kyrio of Stone before the Fall, and Angel of > Fortitude. Was he an AA though? No. > Malphas: Another problem. He was an Angel of Stone... but did he become a > Superior? He was an Archangel, by the GMG. Word unknown. > Mammon: I know nothing about him actually. Was he at the Fall? Yes. Lucifer led him into damnation. > Fleuity: Same problem as Mammon. Created by Haagenti. > Asmodeus: Again, was he at the Fall? Did he serve Dominic? Yes and yes. > Was he created, > or did he fledge? Did he Fall with Lucifer, Yes. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 09:58:31 -0500 From: David Wood Subject: Re: IN> Dark Humor Productions Presents: Fate, Lies, and the Bals eraphic Way On Thursday, October 31, 2002, at 01:31 PM, Michael Walton wrote: > --- "Wajenberg, Earl" wrote: >> I assume duck tape adheres to celestials better than duct >> tape would? > > Viaduct? Via no chicken? Surely Kobal has access to > chicken tape. };> Yes, but only Andrealphus uses it with any regularity. (implants the thought, lights it, and tiptoes out while it starts to simmer...) - --David http://skipjack.bluecrab.org/~dwood "It's not apathy... I just have a very aggressive definition of what isn't my damn problem." ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 12:12:20 -0800 From: Daiv Subject: IN> How Canon is Canon? Finally, I gave in and bought a new copy of In Nomine core rules (the second printing hardcover, (thus doing my part to bring about the Second Coming of In Nomine (I assume that SJG does not care if they sell out to new customers or to repeat customers whose books disappeared under arcane circumstances (not really that arcane, but it sounds better than to say my ex Wifes boyfriend borrowed it, and never returned it))) I find myself wondering. Which books did our Beloved ArchAngel Beth (tm) actually edit? I know the core book was done under the original line editor (a Roman Catholic priest, IIRC, who has disappeared off the face of the earth as far as IN is concerned) and then he did some of the Revelations series... and there was an interim period, where there was no Line Editor, and mistakes... happened. Now we have the aforementioned Beth (praise be to her name). But which books did you actually edit, to your own satisfaction? This indicates to me, that if you were to have your way, serious parts of the existing canon would change. I am curious where those parts of canon currently live. The reason being... well, first off, I have finally had a decent cup of coffee, after three or four days of bad (ie, weak) coffee, so I am feeling a little wired. But also, because I like to know what Canon really is, so I know when i am breaking the rules. More fun that way, you see. - -Daiv, Tech Writer in service to Coffee, in search of a Superior (again). dreams caught on the page between madness and coffee sun rise rituals - -- wireless network 802.11 transparent bamboo ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 Nov 2002 16:20:41 -0700 From: Julian Mensch Subject: IN> [INverse] Litheroy (part 2) =DISSONANCE= It is dissonant for a demon of Accusation to have one of his accusations proven to be false. The idea that someone could be truly innocent, devoid of guilt, is so loathsome to these demons' mindset that proof of it fractures their personal Symphonies and drives them to indescribable fury. =BAND ATTUNEMENTS= Balseraphs (RESTRICTED) A Balseraph of Accusation can manufacture evidence of any crime they believe to be true. This is similar to the canonical Balseraph of the Media attunement, but it affects only long- term media such as papers, fingerprints or computer files. All things that will be altered by this attunement must be in the Balseraph's vicinity when it is used -- the demon can't change computer files hosted offsite, for example. The demon must make a successful resonance roll to "lie to reality" this way, but the duration of the evidence is measured in days, not minutes. The Balseraph can increase this duration using the rules for artifice found in the Infernal Players' Guide normally. Djinn (RESTRICTED) A Djinn of Accusation automatically knows the most deviant behavior their attuned has engaged in over the duration of the attunement. These demons are stalkers in the most literal sense, priding themselves in knowing all the most sordid details of their attuned's lives -- the better to torment them with, of course. Calabim (RESTRICTED) If a Calabite of Accusation can bring one human to physically strike another human who is defenseless over a perceived or actual transgression the demon revealed, the Calabite may make a resonance roll and add the damage to that inflicted by the original strike (even if the original damage is nothing -- the attunement can be used on a blow as simple as a slap across the face). This one particular use of their resonance causes no disturbance in the Symphony, even if the human dies. Habbalah When a Habbalah meets the gaze of another person, they auto- matically know what single crime, deviance, normally hidden trait or action evokes the most visceral emotional resonance in that person -- the one accusation they are least capable of being objective or forgiving about. Honorium (RESTRICTED) When an Honorite resonates a subject, she can choose to force him to expose the greatest sin she has discovered. This functions essentially as the canonical attunement Dark Desire, but the Honorite must first succeed in a resonance roll. The desire implanted is always to either confess the sin in question or to act on it immediately in such a blatant manner as to expose the sinner's nature for all to see (the choice of which depends on the context, at the game master's discretion). The Honorite must verbally accuse the target of the sin in question, immediately after the resonance use, to trigger this ability. (Honorium judge people by their own twisted standards, but for the purposes of this attunement they may only choose to expose things the target feels strongly shameful about. Obviously, since the Honorium resonance reveals things the target really has done, this can't be used to procure false confessions. It can be used to make the target confess to things that are not /evil/, however. For example, many homosexuals have been humiliatingly outed with this power, and many Seraphim feel a great shame about having to keep the War, and the existence of angels, secret from humans...) Dark Lilim (RESTRICTED) If one of these Daughters can sense a Need to preserve a secret, they can claim a geas-hook from that person by telling him what they know and promising not to reveal it. When (not if, never if) they later betray this trust, the geas-hook remains intact even through they have not actually fulfilled the Need. Shedim (RESTRICTED) While ridden by a Shedite of Accusation, a Host must succeed in a Contest of Wills with the demon to formulate the belief that any person is trustworthy or innocent of wrongdoing. They do not have to believe a given person is guilty of a given crime, but they know intuitively that _everybody_ is guilty of _something_, and something serious enough to make them a black-hearted monster in the Host's eyes. For normally trusting people, this manifests only when they stop to think about the people around them, rather then being an abrupt 180' shift in worldview. (Note that this attunement is always on, which can make these Shedim suspicious in a normally trusting Host. For this reason, they usually choose Hosts that believe the worst of everyone to begin with...) Impudites (RESTRICTED) These demons are Litheroy's blackmailers, gaining dominance over others through knowledge of their secrets. If they have dirt on a subject of their resonance (either aspect), they may add the level of the victim's Need to keep that information secret to all their resonance rolls. Skulker (RESTRICTED) Whenever one of these demons hears a disturbance, he may roll Perception to learn if it was caused by an act that the being who caused it feels shame over. If it was, and the check digit of the Perception roll is four or higher, the Skulker also learns the identity of the being who caused the disturbance. =SERVITOR ATTUNEMENTS= MOB JUSTICE Using this attunement, a demon of Accusation can draw together a lynch mob on the strength of one of her accusations. The people drawn in must view the nature of the accusation as wrongful, but they don't need to be people who would usually engage in mob violence. The attunement takes about half an hour to take full effect, and has no impact on anyone who makes a conscious effort to resist it. Otherwise, given a reasonable setting and an evoc- ative accusation, the demon can drum up five crazed subjects per Celestial Force, and another five for every point of Charisma modifier he has. Unless quickly directed towards an appropriately mobish activity, the group will disperse or choose their own target. LIGHT OF REVELATION This uniquely horrible attunement supernaturally exposes the memories of a subject to everyone nearby. The demon spends two Essence and touches a subject for about a minute; the subject must be adequately restrained, and must fail a Will roll, though torture, degradation or various skills can grant a penalty to the roll at the game master's discretion. At this point, the demon can choose any specific incident he wishes from the sub- ject's memories, and it will be replayed telepathically as the victim experienced it to everybody within a sixty yard radius globe. The memory plays forth in realtime, and the subject is as aware as everyone else of the exposure. If a demon can aim this violation to strike a psychological weak point, it's entirely possible to seriously damage the victim's psyche with this attunement. TRUSTED AUTHORITY With this attunement, a demon of Accusation becomes preter- naturally persuasive is regard to those beneath him -- gremlins, imps, snotlings, frothlings, weaker etherials, demons who are not as Distincted as he as, and most importantly any humans whose Status is lower than the Status of the demon's Role. In regards to these people, any skill rolls needed to make a given accusation stick (Lying, Knowledges, Savior-Faire, etc.) can be boosted by adding the demon's Celestial Forces to the roll. Note that this only works in regard to making accusations in a credible manner; other social activities are unaffected. CHAINS OF SHAME Using this attunement, a demon of Accusation can literally enslave the soul of a human. The demon must first be instrumental in that human reaching his Fate, and the Fate must be brought about by effectively destroying the target's life through shame and accusations. If these conditions are met, when the victim's soul arrives in Hell it will be bound by three geas/6's owed to the demon. (Note that, as in canon, a Damned Soul cannot be given a vessel; Hell has no Saints. However, the demon can communicate with his Damned servants at a Tether, and set them to spying or doing other favors for him in Hell.) =DISTINCTIONS= Knight of Truth The gaze of these demons can cause a target to lose her composure, stammering and stuttering; the demon's Will must exceed the target's for this to be effective. Under this effect, the subject suffers no game penalties, may defend herself as she wishes verbally and isn't otherwise affected - -- but her credibility may be severely reduced in the eyes of those around her. Captain of Justice If the demon can manage to drive a subject to complete emotional hysteria (or quiet, but equally intense, extended shame and guilt) through the force of her accusations, she can use the ability granted by this Distinction to implant a suggestion toward escape from shame via suicide in the victim's mind. The victim is entitled to a Will roll to resist the effect, and the effect is not instant; it may take hours or even days for the victim to reach a suitable emotion state to kill themselves. If the victim has friends and they offer counsel or emotional support -- or, best of all, refuse to believe false accusations -- this can add a bonus to the roll or negate the Distinction's effect entirely. Note that the emotions that this Distinction depends upon can not merely be conjured by supernatural means such as a Song or the Habbalah resonance; they have to be the genuine result of an effective accusation. Baron of Vindication Litheroy's Barons have a very special privilege: access to the Prince's own Book of Sins. In this ancient artifact (which, like the Superior himself, has many manifestations, though it can not be removed from his Cathedral) is recorded, as Litheroy says, the dark and horrible deeds that every living (or otherwise sapient) being has ever committed. The truth is a little more complex: the book contains every accusation that is either true or /cannot be firmly disproved/. Essentially, it's an ever-bountiful source of the most credible lies possible, written by Litheroy himself and intermingled with the truth of all crimes. Like Yves' library, the sheer bulk of information makes research intimidating and lengthy. Further, the book has a deleterious effect on the psyche of those who delve too deeply into it's profane lore: long-term exposure can lead to paranoia, schitzo- phrenia, disconnection from reality, and ultimately a direct, mind-shattering exposure to the horror that is Litheroy's personal Symphony. =RITES= * Publicly accuse someone of a serious transgression. * Deliver evidence of a serious crime to the proper (human, infernal or even divine) authorities. =PRINCIPALITY= Litheroy's Principality is the Cave of Trials, where demons of questionable loyalty are brought to have their sins exposed before their peers using the Light of Revelation attunement. Often, the subjects of inquiry are simply kidnapped off the streets of other Principalities, beaten and dragged to the Cave to have their secret sins made into an evening's entertainment for their peers. These subjects don't even have to be guilty of anything specific to serve as reminders that everyone is, ultimately, evil. These faux-trials take place in the vast upper caverns, lakes and plateaus, and resemble nothing so much as a cult ceremony or KKK lynching. The Cave itself is actually a deep series of interconnected underground passageways, lakes and chasms, some running free with magma or acidic waters. In fact, the labyrinthine innards of the less- traveled parts of the Cave of Trials make one of the best places in Hell for clandestine meetings, disposing of evidence and general skullduggery. It certainly hasn't been fully explored, and it's ironic that a Prince so concerned with full disclosure should have a Principality full of hidden sins, secret enclaves and buried darkness. The fact that he cannot even expose all the evil that hides in his own home drives Litheroy mad, but the fact that it's deepest grottos serve well to conceal the remains of his own secret sins eases his hypocritical mind somewhat. In practice, very little of the real business of the Word of Accusation takes place in Litheroy's Principality. No part of the Cave is urbanized, or even free enough from rot and humidity to make it a good place to store files or papers. Like every Princi- pality (and every Cathedral), it reflects it's owner -- and as such it has a primal element, a visceral malice that makes it an unsuitable locale for civilized work. The antisocial nature of the Servitors of Accusation means that gathering them all together in one place is a bad idea, anyway. The business of Accusation is thus done in guarded, cold meetings in nameless cafes in every Principality of Hell, and every nation on Earth, where demons who do not even know each others' names trade venomous secrets meant to destroy the lives of people who have never even so much as hurt them. =RELATIONS= Litheroy is commonly known in Hell as being Dominic's bitch. As a minor Superior, he does adopt a distinctly submissive att- itude toward the Word of Condemnation, and goes out of his way to aid their endeavors. Dominic is the only other Prince in all of Hell who really Gets It, according to Litheroy's way of thinking, so his loyalty to him is strong. Dominic views Accu- sation is a significantly more nuanced light -- the evidence Litheroy brings forth against traitors is certainly useful, and his work on Earth certainly furthers Dominic's Word -- but he is also chaotic, unstable and demented. While Litheroy is certainly selfishly solipsistic even by Balseraph standards, there is also a vein of perverted altruism is his mission, and that displeases Dominic. Despite this, simple pragmatism does demand that the two Words work closely together, and so they do. Because of Litheroy's close relationship with Dominic, he has become something of an intermediary between the Houses of Destr- uction and Defilement, serving as a medium by which other Princes can pass messages and innuendo back and forth and still, thanks to Litheroy's loose sanity, have plausible deniability. Litheroy is quite pleased with this role, as it gives him ready access to the gossip and intrigues of both of the major Houses of Hell, and lets him keep a careful watch over the Princes of Destruction -- an advantage he would not otherwise possess. Otherwise, Litheroy's relations vary from week to week. He is actually more amicable to the other Princes the more sordid det- ails he has been able to root out about their affairs. As long as he knows someone's secret sins, he can deal with them equi- tably. It's only when he can't find any significant accusations that he can make stick that he becomes intensely hateful toward his fellows; this largely manifests in a fanatical desire to prove them guilty of something and tear down everything they do in the meantime. Allied: Dominic Associated: [2-3 other Princes] Neutral: [the remaining Princes] Hostile: [5 other Princes] Enemy: Laurence, Christopher, [1 other Prince] =INVOCATION= Chance of Invocation: 2 +1 A tabloid paper (i.e., National Inquirer) +2 A serious book of negative racial propaganda +3 A family fighting with real malice +4 The public outing of a major scandal +5 The body of a lynching victim +6 A piece of "smoking gun" evidence in a nation-wide scandal ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 01:17:01 -0500 From: Michael Bruner Subject: Re: IN> The Fall of Kobal? At 09:14 AM 11/1/2002 -0700, you wrote: >Unni Solaas writes: >>http://www.matazone.co.uk/halloween_special_2002.html >>This is disturbing and requires Flash. :) > >Disturbing doesn't begin to describe it O_O;; that looks like an acute >case of Kobal starting to really become depressed. Or just bored as all Hell. Man, you haven't seen the rest of the stuff on that site then if you think THAT was disturbing. The Little Goth Girl is obviously a Soldier of Hell of... rather unusual origin, Mr. Snuffleburger naturally a Gluttony servitor, and Samurai Lapin (my personal favorite) must be a Cherub or Malakite, formerly of the Sword, now in service to Christopher. The bunnies naturally serve Hell, but I'm afraid to speculate as to who specifically :). ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 Nov 2002 19:05:03 +1030 From: "G N E Z D A" Subject: IN> Wisdom as an attribute Okay, I'm making a shamanistic type character in IN, and I have a question for you all. He's meant to be very much the typical Native American shaman-type who has a very spiritual and peaceful 'understanding' of the universe and is very wise. Just wondering, which attribute do you think would reflect wisdom more; intelligence or perception? He's primarily an ethereal-based character, so intelligence would be better for game mechanics, but then that doesn't matter so much as rping. - --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.410 / Virus Database: 231 - Release Date: 31/10/2002 ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2002 08:14:57 -0500 From: BC Petery Subject: IN> [INverse] Litheroy Sounds like he'd be happy with "zero tolerance," where just being accused leads to punishment. ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #2844 ********************************