From owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Wed Jun 11 15:10:43 1997 Return-Path: Received: from lists.io.com (lists.io.com [199.170.88.15]) by pyramid.sjgames.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id PAA19612 for ; Wed, 11 Jun 1997 15:10:43 -0500 Received: (from majordom@localhost) by lists.io.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) id MAA11358 for in_nomine-digest-outgoing; Wed, 11 Jun 1997 12:22:33 -0500 Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 12:22:33 -0500 Message-Id: <199706111722.MAA11358@lists.io.com> From: owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com (in_nomine-digest) To: in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Subject: in_nomine-digest V1 #205 Reply-To: in_nomine-l@lists.io.com Sender: owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Errors-To: owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Precedence: bulk in_nomine-digest Wednesday, June 11 1997 Volume 01 : Number 205 In this digest: Re: IN> Seeing Artifacts IN> Seraph of Marc Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> ...And I Thought I'd Never Ask a Kyrio Question... Re: IN> Omigod! a NON- Kyrio question! Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Omigod! a NON- Kyrio question! Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> ...And I Thought I'd Never Ask a Kyrio Question... Re: IN> Seeing Artifacts IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) Re: IN> GMing Styles. IN> Suggested reading... Re: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) Re: IN> Mercurians RE: IN> Seeing Artifacts RE: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) IN> Raphael IN> re:Gotham City... IN> How can someone play a Djinn ? Re: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question Re: IN> Mercurians ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 12:30:31 -0400 From: Elizabeth McCoy Subject: Re: IN> Seeing Artifacts At 6:50 PM +0000 6/9/97, Walt Mazur wrote: >On page 42 is a box describing the perception of artifacts by sight >and touch. Sight has the capability of making artifacts too dangerous >to use, depending on how it's interpreted. So my question is, exactly >how obvious are artifacts? Maybe I can be clearest by analogy to >normal vision: (Nice analogies!) I'd say that the level of the artifact might be a guide -- so a level 1 artifact, concealed in a pocket, would be a "Day-glow" or "Bright color" at best. That Relic/6 Holy Hand Grenade, though, might be a "Bright Light" or "Brilliant Strobe Light", even in a pocket... And/or it might depend on if it's a celestial relic or a corporeal one -- corporeal ones might be easier to hide. >Brilliant strobe light:[...] >Bright light: [...] >Light:[...] >Day-glow color:[...] >Bright color: [...] >Distinctive color:[...] >Labeled, "This is an artifact," in black and white: you see it only if >you specifically look at the artifact. IOW, the PC has to ask, is the >object an artifact? I don't think that any artifact would be this "dim," myself -- a celestial PC should have a Perception roll to notice the artifact if his gaze drifts across it, IMO. (I.e., Distinctive Color at the worst.) If you're carefully *looking* (sorting through the can of buttons for the Relequiry one, say), then that might give a bit of a bonus, since you're looking in the right place for the Distinctive Color. Hope the thoughts are useful. I'm feeling vague today. - --emccoy@nh.ultranet.com // arcangel@io.com // emccoy@jade.mv.net GURPS characters, Roleplayers; Art: http://www.io.com/~arcangel/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 22:08:19 +0100 (BST) From: maya@tcp.co.uk (GR Cogman) Subject: IN> Seraph of Marc And as he attempted to stem the hordes of Nybbas, Marc thought he had found a way to plug their shameless lies. Which is why a seraph of his was appointed: Cassiel, Angel of the Word of Truth-in-Advertising Stats : Set them relevant to a tough Word-bound Seraph in your game. (I'm no good at stats) Rites : Watch commercial tv for two hours solid, noting down all inaccuracies or falsities for later investigation : 1 essence Give evidence of falsity in advertised claims to the Better Business Bureau (or equivalent) : 1 essence Expose incorrect claims in advertisement on national media : 2 essence Notes: Poor Cassiel got his Word partway through the twentieth century, and has been fighting ever since. It's sheer torture for a Seraph in any case, having to continually expose himself to lies in order to uncover them. However, he is said to have founded, or been responsible for the founding of a number of watchdogging interests that keep a check on advertising. Of late he's been getting a touch more extreme, and associating with followers of Jordi and Gabriel in order to take down some of the worse billboards. He tends to use a middle-aged vessel with a permanently harried air to it, and be constantly rubbing his brows as though dealing with a headache. His reports to Marc are full, thick, and multi-appendiced. PCs assigned to assist him will be given many companies to investigate. They may also be required to test some of the products themselves. "No, I don't think it's good for my hair." After all, the truth must be found, proven, established, reported.. Maya - --- Maya, Elohim of Eli in service to Blandine maya@tcp.co.uk - -- "There are those who say that wizards are subject to temptations and addictions beyond the understanding of ordinary men: the addiction to shape-changing, or to meditation under the influence of certain herbs and conditions of the stars; the obsession with knowledge, and the development of power. Yet this is not so. Temptation is temptation, obsession is obsession, and choice is choice." - Isar Chelladan, Precepts of Wizardry. -- "Dog Wizard", Barbara Hambly. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 17:48:18 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question > > Aw, c'mon! Can you imagine it? Hordes of FLAMING > >GREEN PIGEONS attacking some demon... wow! > > > > > *And* if they picked up the imunity to energy Attunment, there goes your > flame thrower.... Where's the imagination of today's youth? Hand grenades, claymores, a knife through the gullet, poison, simple strangulation, a hearty boot to the breadbasket... There's a _lot_ of ways to kill a pigeon! (I haven't even mentioned the rocket launchers yet...) - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |John Karakash - Lucent Technologies (formerly AT&T) | | (919)380-4629 | | "A fundamental principle of economics is that the | | more you tax something, the less you get of it. | | In this country we tax success most of all." | \___________________________________________________/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 16:20:53 -0500 From: Charybdis GreyDragon Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question >> OTOH, allowing one Song per host is offset by the fact that the Kyrio would >> blow a *lot* of Essence in one shot. Not too mention the fact that it sends up a HUGE signal flare to all the Celestials in the area just screaming, "I am a Celestial messing with the Symphony!!!" And then leaves the Kyriotate short (or out) of Essence to deal with all those who come to look at what's going on... [John Karakash] > That's basically it. Kyriotates claim to fame is their >multiplicity. Malakim beat the snot out of things, Mercurians >get chummy with humans, and Kyriotates can sing three part harmony >with themselves. ;) [John Karakash] > It doesn't really get unbalancing because small vessels >means a _much_ greater chance that the Kyriotate will be hurting >for Essence to heal all those bodies when the combat is done >(small vessels take more damage per blow). Yeah, that too... [John Karakash] > There are probably going to be special rules limiting >Kyriotates when they are divided between the planes of reality, >though. Somehow I managed to overlook the little parenthetical >statement on p. 103 about the Kyriotate manifesting on multiple >planes. Ouch! Stay tuned for more answers about the most >troublesome choir! Dividing among the planes would have to be confusing I would think... Maybe not for the Kyriotates themselves, but certainly for the GM that has to keep track of them :) Peace, Charybdis GreyDragon karydbis@phoenix.net ** "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers; for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.** ** --Hebrews, XIII,2 ** ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 97 17:54 EDT From: Walter Milliken Subject: Re: IN> ...And I Thought I'd Never Ask a Kyrio Question... > So, what do you do? Do you forbid one type of Celestial, make two >little groups or mix it all like I do?? In my campaign, I said "no one fully on the Dark side of the Force -- angels or neutrals only". This leaves open the possibilities of Renegades, though, depending on their personal goals, as well as a lot of other possibilities. - ---Walter ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 97 18:17 EDT From: Walter Milliken Subject: Re: IN> Omigod! a NON- Kyrio question! >> The only way to 'steal' vessels is to by a Kyriotate/Shedim >>or have the Song of Possession. This said, it is _quite_ possible. >>Both the resonances and the Song have a limited amount of time, >>so work fast (i.e. you can't get a free vessel out of this). You >>can still keep the bag, though. O=) > >Ok. So does an unoccupied vessel have any Will at all? I would say it's one of two possiblities: a) it has no Will at all b) since it belongs to someone else, trying to take it over is like trying to take them over: they can feel it, and resist. I think I prefer option b. - ---Walter ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 15:10:06 -0700 (MST) From: shadocat@primenet.com (Jeff Miller) Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question >>> One per host. Cool, eh? ;) Yes, it can awfully ugly, but >>>remember that EACH of the vessels has to be returned no worse for >>>wear. A lot of small vessels is just _asking_ for dissonance. >>> >>> >>Yeah, but the thought of nine birds with CorpF of 5 dive bombing some poor >>defensless demon.... >> >>Besides, that's what the Song of Corporeal Healing is for. > >Yeah, but when you need to heal *nine* hosts...? Gets expensive, >especially when you've only got 9 or so Essence to spend, total. > Well, aside from the fact that that was somewhat tounge in cheek, if you let them *all* get hurt, you're doing something wrong. Also, it wouldn't be too bad if you had Corp Healing up to a high level... -- Jeff ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 18:01:11 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> Omigod! a NON- Kyrio question! On Jun 10, 5:58pm, Walt Mazur wrote: > Subject: Re: IN> Omigod! a NON- Kyrio question! > On Tue, 10 Jun 1997 08:30:27 -0400, "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" > wrote: > > > The only way to 'steal' vessels is to be a Kyriotate/Shedim > >or have the Song of Possession. This said, it is _quite_ possible. > >Both the resonances and the Song have a limited amount of time, > >so work fast (i.e. you can't get a free vessel out of this). You > >can still keep the bag, though. O=) > > Ok. So does an unoccupied vessel have any Will at all? My, my, my. I'd have to say it doesn't have any Will. - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |John Karakash - Lucent Technologies (formerly AT&T) | | (919)380-4629 | | "A fundamental principle of economics is that the | | more you tax something, the less you get of it. | | In this country we tax success most of all." | \___________________________________________________/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 18:04:12 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question > >The Song of Healing doesn't heal dead. Maybe you could make friends > >with a Demon of Saminga so he can restore them as Zombi! :) > > > But if the Kyrio is still in the host it's not dead yet right? > > It would seem to me that healing would work normally though normal medicine > may not work of the host has negative body hits. As the rules currently stand, the Body Hits of the host only matter when it's time for the Kyriotate to leave. If the Kyriotate has 15 hits and the host would normally have 5, then 10 points of damage doesn't 'kill' the Kyriotate, but it would give the host a lot of problems when the Kyriotate leaves! Normal healing is rather slow for this sort of thing, but will work. Best stick to the Song. Faster. More reliable. Smaller hospital bills. =) - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |John Karakash - Lucent Technologies (formerly AT&T) | | (919)380-4629 | | "A fundamental principle of economics is that the | | more you tax something, the less you get of it. | | In this country we tax success most of all." | \___________________________________________________/ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 00:02:49 GMT From: w_mazur@PRIMENET.COM (Walt Mazur) Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question On Tue, 10 Jun 1997 16:27:12 -0400, Elizabeth McCoy wrote: >Besides, it only encircles the *hands* of the Malakite... So you >get hordes of pigeons with flaming green claws divebombing... But claws are equivalent to feet. It's the wingtips that should glow green (if anything!) >(Can I have an Official Seraph Pedant Point now?) Dibs! ;) ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 23:40:57 GMT From: w_mazur@primenet.com (Walt Mazur) Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question On Tue, 10 Jun 1997 12:26:22 -0700 (MST), shadocat@primenet.com (Jeff Miller) wrote: >>The Song of Healing doesn't heal dead. Maybe you could make friends >>with a Demon of Saminga so he can restore them as Zombi! :) >> >But if the Kyrio is still in the host it's not dead yet right? Argh! I can't find it, but I think it's been said that the Body of a host uses the host's Forces as the Vessel level. So if the Kyrio has a par 3 Corporeal Forces, a 1 Force, Strength 2 bird has only (3+1)*2=8 Body, even with the Kyrio in it. If the bird takes 8 body it goes unconscious, and the Forces of the Kyrio in it are frozen in it; after Vessel level * Strength more hits (1*2=2), the Kyrio is tossed out with dissonance, and the bird is dead. Totally dead. Way dead. So, not just a little dead, then. >It would seem to me that healing would work normally though normal medicine >may not work of the host has negative body hits. I don't see any reason why negative body wouldn't heal normally with a medicine roll. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 20:39:59 -0400 (EDT) From: "Paul F. Strack" Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question On Tue, 10 Jun 1997, John Karakash - Lucent ASCC wrote: > Where's the imagination of today's > youth? Hand grenades, claymores, a knife through the gullet, > poison, simple strangulation, a hearty boot to the breadbasket... > There's a _lot_ of ways to kill a pigeon! > (I haven't even mentioned the rocket launchers yet...) Just lure them in front of jet turbine. Sure, it takes a lot of preparation, but it's *very* satisfying. Slurp. Paul Strack | Madness takes its toll. pfstrack@math.unc.edu | Please have exact change. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ World of Darkness Page - http://www.math.unc.edu/Grads/pfstrack/wod.html In Nomine Page: INC2 - http://www.math.unc.edu/Grads/pfstrack/innom/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 19:12:34 -0400 (EDT) From: "Paul F. Strack" Subject: Re: IN> ...And I Thought I'd Never Ask a Kyrio Question... On Tue, 10 Jun 1997, Andre Ribeiro wrote: > Well, anyway, how do you guys manage to be GM of a troupe of Angels > *and* Demons? I got a strong reason (one of the characters is the son of > a demon and a she-angel - both are playing too. He's a soldier and the > others are acquaintances either of his father or of his mother... But > that's another story...) but I know that won't be always the case. > So, what do you do? Do you forbid one type of Celestial, make two > little groups or mix it all like I do?? The stock method is to provide a common enemy, a person or problem worse than the demons for the angels to target. A second option is to run a "cold war" game, where the angels and demons spar indirectly, through human proxies. When they aren't actually using their proxies, the angels and demons can meet on a social basis, maybe even come to accomodations to minimize trouble for themselves. A third option is to run a "Renegades and Outcasts" games, where Celestials from both sides snub their noses at both Heaven *and* Hell. I'm sure there are other possibilities as well, but those are the three that come immediately to mind. In the PBEM game I'm running, the angels and demons interact occasionally, but mostly follow their plots seperately. My table-top game is all angels. Paul Strack | Madness takes its toll. pfstrack@math.unc.edu | Please have exact change. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ World of Darkness Page - http://www.math.unc.edu/Grads/pfstrack/wod.html In Nomine Page: INC2 - http://www.math.unc.edu/Grads/pfstrack/innom/ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 01:25:46 GMT From: w_mazur@primenet.com (Walt Mazur) Subject: Re: IN> Seeing Artifacts On Tue, 10 Jun 1997 12:30:31 -0400, Elizabeth McCoy wrote: >(Nice analogies!) Thank you! >I'd say that the level of the artifact might be a guide -- so a >level 1 artifact, concealed in a pocket, would be a "Day-glow" >or "Bright color" at best. That Relic/6 Holy Hand Grenade, >though, might be a "Bright Light" or "Brilliant Strobe Light", >even in a pocket... The problem I see making them quite that "bright" is that it would make artifacts a little too unusable. Artifact rings or other jewelry would be way too obvious. Even just a distinctive color prohibits something like a car reliquary that can change appearance using the Song of Form. >And/or it might depend on if it's a celestial relic or a corporeal >one -- corporeal ones might be easier to hide. Good thought. >>Brilliant strobe light:[...] >>Bright light: [...] >>Light:[...] >>Day-glow color:[...] >>Bright color: [...] >>Distinctive color:[...] >>Labeled, "This is an artifact," in black and white: you see it only if >>you specifically look at the artifact. IOW, the PC has to ask, is the >>object an artifact? > >I don't think that any artifact would be this "dim," myself -- a >celestial PC should have a Perception roll to notice the artifact >if his gaze drifts across it, IMO. (I.e., Distinctive Color at the >worst.) Perhaps having an artifact that dim should be an Artifact Limitation. >If you're carefully *looking* (sorting through the can of buttons >for the Relequiry one, say), then that might give a bit of a bonus, >since you're looking in the right place for the Distinctive Color. Also, a touch will give another roll. >Hope the thoughts are useful. I'm feeling vague today. Oh, dear. Time to switch hosts? ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 12:52:35 +1000 From: "Patrick O'Duffy" Subject: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) G'day. Someone (I forget who) posted an idea on the DC Batman characters a few days back. Well, I was thinking about that while going to sleep last night, and here are some thoughts. This is, of course, only the opinion of one comics reader, and though I'm a Bat-fan of sorts, I'm no expert. These aren't character write-ups - just thoughts on Choir, Superior and possible tweaks. I give reasons why I've made the choices I have. Batman - Seraph of Dominic. No, not a Malakim. Batman, besides being a general biff-king, is a thinker, a detective, an inventor and a host of other talents. He makes more sense as a truth-seeker than a 'pure' warrior. Why Dominic? Well, given Batman's general quest for justice, it seemed best if he fought for Michael, Dominic or Laurence. Michael and Laurence are very combat-oriented, but Dominic's Distinctions and Rites best seem to fit the character. I'd guess Batman to be a Master of Law. Word-bound? Maybe, but I'm not sure with what Word. Gotham, perhaps... Robin - Mercurian of Dominic. From a player POV, it'd be nicer if Robin worked for a different Superior (for the sake of variety), but maybe it makes more sense this way. Robin (Tim Drake) is definitely a people person, so Mercurian seems apporpriate, and Dominic's Mercurian's gain no dissonance from fighting the guilty. The Dom/Merc attunement also represents Robin's computer and detective prowess, so as to learn about a human's 'rap sheet'. I doubt Robin would have any Distinctions and this point, and certainly wouldn't be Word-bound. Nightwing - Ofanim of Michael Nightwing, the original Robin, is one of the world's best acrobats, as well as being a generally cheerful and active type, so I'd put him down as Ofanim. As for Michael - Nightwing's less of a detective in some ways than Batman & Robin, so the more phyisical side makes sense. I'd possibly put Nightwing down as a Friend of the Fighters (giving resistance to fear), based on his interaction with the Scarecrow in the last few issues of the title, but that's iffy. No Word. Azrael - Malakim of Laurence. Azrael is definitely a fighter, not a thinker. And a fanatical one at that, with flaming swords to boot - all spells Laurence to me. Azrael has suffered from Dissonance and Discord in the past, but has managed to work most of that off in the last year or so. Perhaps a Vassal of the Sword, but not Word-bound. Oracle - Seraph of Jean In the comics, Oracle (Barbara Gordon) is the former Batgirl, now crippled and a computer expert. The intelligence of the character suggests a Seraph, while the computers suggest Jean - particularly since his Seraphs have photographic memories, which Barbara possesses. While I doubt Oracle has any Distinction above Vassal, she may have a Word - Crime, perhaps, or Criminal Knowledge (or Knowledge of Criminals?) to represent her vast databases. Black Canary - Ofanim of Gabriel If we're dealing with Oracle, we should also cover Black Canary, her occasional partner. As with Nightwing, her demeanor and abilities suggest an Ofanim, while Gabriel's mission to punish those who flee justice fits the general nature of BC's adventures. I'd guess no Distinctions or Word. Huntress - Malakim of Michael Huntress, a vigilante unaligned with Batman but who works in Gotham, is (like Azrael) more of a fighter than anything else. Michael's Malakim seem to be the most direct, and that rather fits her demeanor. Again, no Distinctions or Word. Kind of annoying how the female characters get the short end of the stick, isn't it? Catwoman - Renegade(?) Lilim, previously(?) serving Valefor To be honest, it's hard to see how any other choice of Band/Superior would make sense. The only grey area is whether or not Catwoman is bright/grey/dark Lilim. She's cooperated with Batman on many occasions, which seems odd for a working demon - but maybe it's a plan by Valefor to have her ingratiate herself with Gotham's defenders. Or, perhaps she really is Renegade, out for herself... or maybe Valefor gives her a lot of room to move. If Catwoman is still in Valefor's service, she'd be a Captain of Corsairs, but I don't know if she'd have a Word. Hmmm... this post of getting a bit long... I might leave this here, and post the Bat-villains stuff tomorrow, if anyone's interested. See you then. - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia Glass jaw, alcohol whore Cardboard cut-out lying on the floor Lame-brain's drunk again Stupid dumb-dumb cold plumb insane POP WILL EAT ITSELF, "Wake Up! Time to Die..." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 23:05:30 -0500 From: Charybdis GreyDragon Subject: Re: IN> GMing Styles. [Kirt A. Dankmyer] >I just disallow one type of Celestial. For that matter, I disallow certain >Superiors, where I know the person won't have anything to do -- servitors >of Blandine, for example, since in my upcoming campaign there isn't going >to be much going on on the Etherial Plane. (Not at first, anyway...) Hell, >I'm disallowing Malakim (unless they work for Novalis, maybe, or have a >good story), since they might have to develop some long-term relationships >with demons if they're going to get to the bottom of what's going on. That's what our GM has done... Limited us to Angels or Servitors of God... And restricted us from taking servitors of Blandine... and also from taking Kyrotiates... He says he may relent a bit once things get underway, but for now, that's that... [Kirt A. Dankmyer] >I think too few GMs make full use of "the rule of NO". (One might argue I'm >overusing it, but that's another discussion...) That is, the GM has the >right to diallow anything he doesn't want in his campaign. I see so many >posts on RPG lists and newsgroups that start with "My player wants to play >X and oh what can I do..." and I'm always stunned it never even occurrs to >these people to say "no". Here, here! I'm all for GM's rights! I have never been afraid to restrict certain character types, equipment, rules, etc from my campaigns if they were unbalancing, unworkable, or just plain annoying to me. The only hard and fast rule I have ever left alone in a sourcebook is the one that always states, "When in doubt, the GM is the final arbiter..." Course, that might be why my players call me the DragonLady GM when they think I'm not listening... :) Peace, Charybdis GreyDragon karydbis@phoenix.net ** "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers; for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.** ** --Hebrews, XIII,2 ** ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 01:10:22 -0400 From: David Edelstein Subject: IN> Suggested reading... >>>On p.37, it offers two books by Sean Kelly and Rosemary Rogers that could probably spice up your campaign no end: _Saints Preserve Us!: everything you need to know about every saint you'll ever need_ and _Who in Hell...: a guide to the whole damned bunch_. Sadly, the catalog doesn't give ISBNs for either one, but you could probably look them up.<<< "Who in Hell" is ISBN 0-679-76484-4. Highly recommended, as it has lots and lots of demons, named and categorized. - -David ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 15:51:35 +1000 From: "Patrick O'Duffy" Subject: Re: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) Patrick O'Duffy wrote: > Oracle - Seraph of Jean > In the comics, Oracle (Barbara Gordon) is the former Batgirl, now > crippled and a computer expert. The intelligence of the character > suggests a Seraph, while the computers suggest Jean - particularly > since his Seraphs have photographic memories, which Barbara possesses. > While I doubt Oracle has any Distinction above Vassal, she may have a > Word - Crime, perhaps, or Criminal Knowledge (or Knowledge of > Criminals?) to represent her vast databases. Actually, having looked through the rulebook again since making this post, Oracle makes more sense as a Seraph of Yves. She'd be a Friend of the Sages, effectively giving her photographic memory for printed matter and a vast array of general knowledge. In fact, you could drop her Word this way, which is more economical. - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia Glass jaw, alcohol whore Cardboard cut-out lying on the floor Lame-brain's drunk again Stupid dumb-dumb cold plumb insane POP WILL EAT ITSELF, "Wake Up! Time to Die..." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 15:06:29 +0930 From: "Damian O'Dea" Subject: Re: IN> Mercurians Charybdis GreyDragon wrote: > > >> multiplicity. Malakim beat the snot out of things, Mercurians > > [James Rand] > >Actually, I don't see why Malakim have this combat fiend reputation, > >when their resonance has no use in combat. (And most of the Malakim > >servitor attunements don't either - I mean, you'd think the Malakim > >of War attunement would be something really nasty but it's actually > >not near as threatening as either the Seraph or Ofanim attunements!) > >Ofanim are actually a little more dangerous (they at least have a > >resonance that applies to Agility rolls..) > > Maybe it's not so much that they have the given > skills to smash things, but more that they have the *desire* and > *motivation* to smash things... Not being allowed to allow evil to > live in and of itself makes them pretty nasty... And since their > Resonance helps them readily identify those individuals who are > evil and thus must die, they have no excuse not to smash evil... That said, my Malakite of Dominic treats the whole process very clinically and coldly. This human is innocent, and thus is ignored, while that one is evil and so will die. Now. True combat wombat efforts have to go to the Mercurian of Blandine in the group; he is such a lovely person, kind, caring, diplomatic, able to intervene for the humans when they find themselves in the cold eye of the Malakite. But place a demon into the scene and he flies into a psychopathic rage that cares nothing for life and limb. To quote said character "Time for some cathartic violence" (pounding the head of a djinn into the floor until expiry). Kind of a shock to the Elohite that just joined my campaign and had so far assessed him as a calm and rational being much like her-/him-self. ;p ODie... ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 97 09:14:27 UT From: "Hermes Trismegistus" Subject: RE: IN> Seeing Artifacts >The one that really bothers me is the impudites of Vapula, who get these >great essence seeing glasses, but have to wear them right on their face! Actually, I kinda liked that idea. I imagine each Impudite's glasses look different, matching their own personality - some have thin wire frame designer glasses, some bulky black plastic 50s style, etc. My Impudite of Vapula is actually posing as a kid on work experience (Lvl 5 Role, so he can get into virtually anywhere "My careers advisor sent me to see you, Mr. Gstes") and he has the big geeky black glasses. His glasses don't stand out, because I reason that obviously Vapula wouldn't create an artifact that basically says "HI, I"M HERE CAUSING TROUBLE! COME BEAT ME UP" > How are other people dealing with "artifact glow" practically? IMHO, I just like to run a game a bit like a film, if something is appropriate to the plot, then let it happen without a roll. Sometimes the PCs will be floundering around like mullets on a line, and you've just got to feed them clues. Other times, make them search for them actively, it may spoil the plot for them to stumble across the baddies to soon (especially my Impudite, he's working up to something really fun with a Balseraph of Nybbas). Just my 50th of a dollar Kurt This mailing list is killing my drive space }:- ) doombu@msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 97 09:35:12 UT From: "Hermes Trismegistus" Subject: RE: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) Batman - Seraph of Dominic. Robin - Mercurian of Dominic. (this was snipped coz you all know the story) I hope noone is ticked off at this posting, but after Patrick's excellent post, this just came up. Someone may enjoy it. Probably only if they know Judge Dredd comics though. What about Judge Dredd?? He's got to be a Malakim of Dominic. I know he's not DC, but I was reading Judgmemnt in Gotham again last night, and thought of this. Besides I'm more versed in the Dredd universe than Batman... Judge Anderson - Definitely an Elohim of Novalis... Mean Machine - Calabim of Saminga... Just so he knows when "Ah'm gonna set mah dial on 4!" Judge Death - Balseraph of Saminga - Yeah, another deadie lover, but the attunement is too close to the way Death works for him not to be one (and being a Balseraph, he would easily believe the philosophy of "All crime is committed by the living, therefore life itself is a crime". I'll leave the Scarecrow to Patrick, he's much better at that side of the comic world. - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia Glass jaw, alcohol whore Cardboard cut-out lying on the floor Lame-brain's drunk again Stupid dumb-dumb cold plumb insane POP WILL EAT ITSELF, "Wake Up! Time to Die..." I love these .sigs... It's like he raided my CD collection :) Kurt doombu@msn.com "God is the thing that you favour, Evil is your sour flavour. I don't need your hate, I decide my fate." Marilyn Manson ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 09:00:46 -0300 From: Andre Ribeiro Subject: IN> Raphael Charybdis GreyDragon wrote: > Any ideas on what Raphael's Word would be, based on the RA > MacAvoy novels? > Music perhaps... I've never read those novels, but I was thinking 'Cure' myself... Andre ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 08:46:51 -0400 From: Hatcher Rhanyr Subject: IN> re:Gotham City... For those who've been on this list for a while, my write up of the Azrael, the Angel of Vengence was based upon the DC Comics hero(??). I did a more liberal approach to the character, keeping the personality very similar. If anyone wants to check it out I believe the character can be found at Elizabeth McCoy's Website: http://www.io.com/~arcangel/net.character.book/In-Nomine/InNomineChar.html I really didn't think about Batman much, but here's a few thoughts...... Captain America- Mercurian of Michael Hulk- Cherubim of Michael Doctor Strange - Soldier of Heaven (Whadya think he'd be??) Regards, Hatcher ************************************************************************ "The time I like is the rush hour, cos I like the rush The pushing of the people - I like it all so much Such a mass of motion - do not know where it goes I move with the movement and ... I have the touch" -Peter Gabriel-(Ofanim of Gabriel of course) ************************************************************************ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 13:57:33 +0100 From: "Carlos Filipe Duarte" Subject: IN> How can someone play a Djinn ? I NEVER, EVER, saw a harder "rolemodel" to play as a Djinn... Those demons are complete psycho wrecks, and only a person with a story of being in a asylum can even BEGIN to think the way they should think... If I was a Djinn I'd either commit (celestial) suicide, redempt myself or would rebel against both Heaven and Hell. They need to feel some tenderness towards themselves, but they can't accept or endure the presence of other beings (except other Djinn)... Another thing... How come Habbalah are Fallen Elohim ? The Elohim that fell, fell because they reacted accordingly to their emotions... Habbalah don't react according to their emotions, they gain dissonance if they do! (That thing of imposing emotions on other is crap... Habbalah according to the "Dicionary of Angels" by Gustav Davidson are the punishers, the angels sent by GOD to punish the human beings, much like angels of the wrath of god (their complete name is, if I'm not mistaken, Malake Habbalah and doesn't this makes one think something like FALLEN MALAKIM)). More, Elohim is hebrew (if not mistaken) for "the one that came from the sky" (or something like this), or in other words, god. Now, if Elohim is one of the names of god or an choir bearing the name of god, they should be Heavens guardian, no ? They should be the most pure manifestation of celestial "way of life" and not the "mathematicians of Heaven"... Carlos Filipe Duarte ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 09:26:25 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> Loose thoughts on Gotham City... (Pt 1) > Batman - Seraph of Dominic. No way! Batman lies ALL the time about what he's up to. - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |John Karakash - Lucent Technologies (formerly AT&T) | | (919)380-4629 | | "A fundamental principle of economics is that the | | more you tax something, the less you get of it. | | In this country we tax success most of all." | \___________________________________________________/ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 09:21:22 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question > > It doesn't really get unbalancing because small vessels > >means a _much_ greater chance that the Kyriotate will be hurting > >for Essence to heal all those bodies when the combat is done > >(small vessels take more damage per blow). > > Do they? I'll have to reread that section. p. 191, the Animals box: "Note that small creatures have a negative Protection number!" This means that attacks do _bonus_ damage. ;) > Here's another one, how much damage can an insect swarm take? Use the standard calculation for computer Body Hits when a host is possessed. > How does the kyrio heal the damage? If it's replacement of insects, then > could the Eli Attunment, Trans(whatever) create the replacement insects, > thus healing the swarm? Corporeal song of healing works fine. Using the Eli attunement strike me as a bit bogus... the new insects really belong to their own 'swarm'. The GM is allowed to use replacement or tough bugs as a healing method. (Tough bugs means you have a lot of partially injured insects rather than losing part of the swarm.) Perhaps some of the insects that were thought to be 'dead' turned out to just be stunned and get back up? ;) > If a Kyrio is in a large swarm can he split the swarm into two or more > smaller swarms? The definition of swarm is 30 insects per Force. If the Kyrio chooses to split that's fine as long as no group of insects drops below 1 Force. > Does a Kyrio of David actually create the stone host or does it inhabit > existing stone? If the latter does it reshape the stone into a sutable > shape or must a Song be used? They appear and are used just like vessels of other angels... just the substance is different. Initial appearance is up to the Kyriotate. > Just how *much* stone can a Kyrio of David use in one host? > Note: mental pictures of flying boulders dropping on demons, cars, etc. Anything that strikes the GM as 'reasonable'. So if you are allowed to buy an elephant vessel, you should be able to buy a statue of an elephant vessel. Anything larger than a tall humanoid would get rejected in my campaign, for example. - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |John Karakash - Lucent Technologies (formerly AT&T) | | (919)380-4629 | | "A fundamental principle of economics is that the | | more you tax something, the less you get of it. | | In this country we tax success most of all." | \___________________________________________________/ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 09:47:20 -0400 (EDT) From: IQJason@aol.com Subject: Re: IN> Big Sad Kyrio Question " Where's the imagination of today's youth? Hand grenades, claymores, a knife through the gullet, poison, simple strangulation, a hearty boot to the breadbasket... There's a _lot_ of ways to kill a pigeon!" No one's posted it yet...the Essence is mine... "But it's not against any religion, to want to dispose of a pigeon." Tom Lehrer, _Poisoning_Pigeons_In_The_Park_ yours, a little bit of strych-i-nine, - -J ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Jun 1997 10:03:24 -0500 From: Charybdis GreyDragon Subject: Re: IN> Mercurians [Charybdis GreyDragon] >> Maybe it's not so much that they have the given >> skills to smash things, but more that they have the *desire* and >> *motivation* to smash things... Not being allowed to allow evil to >> live in and of itself makes them pretty nasty... And since their >> Resonance helps them readily identify those individuals who are >> evil and thus must die, they have no excuse not to smash evil... [Damian O'Dea] >That said, my Malakite of Dominic treats the whole process very >clinically and coldly. This human is innocent, and thus is ignored, >while that one is evil and so will die. Now. I haven't gotten to play much, but my Malakite of Eli manages to have quite a bit of fun (well, as much fun as a deadly serious Malakite can have) rooting out evil and finding new and creative ways to destroy it... As she is quick to point out, "It is somewhat ironic that some of the most beautiful things created by man are weapons of destruction. But that should not keep us from using them well..." [Damian O'Dea] >True combat wombat efforts have to go to the Mercurian of Blandine >in the group; he is such a lovely person, kind, caring, diplomatic, >able to intervene for the humans when they find themselves in the >cold eye of the Malakite. But place a demon into the scene and he >flies into a psychopathic rage that cares nothing for life and limb. The Mercurian of Dominck in our group would have to have the greatest potential for violence-- especially against other party members... And Kleio (my Malakite of Eli), watches him very closely for signs that he will move against any of the others.... The two of them just plain don't get along, and Kleio would love an excuse to taking him down a peg (or vessel or Force) or two... [Damian O'Dea] >To quote said character "Time for some cathartic violence" (pounding >the head of a djinn into the floor until expiry). Kind of a shock to >the Elohite that just joined my campaign and had so far assessed him >as a calm and rational being much like her-/him-self. ;p Peace, Charybdis GreyDragon karydbis@phoenix.net ** "God is an iron."** ** --Spider Robinson ** ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #205 ******************************* The material here is (C) 1997 Steve Jackson Games, Incorporated. All rights reserved.