From owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Sun Jul 1 16:00:24 2001 Return-Path: Received: from lists.io.com (majordom@lists.io.com [199.170.88.15]) by pyramid.sjgames.com (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA04414 for ; Sun, 1 Jul 2001 16:00:24 -0500 Received: (from majordom@localhost) by lists.io.com (8.9.3/8.9.1a) id PAA30448 for in_nomine-digest-outgoing; Sun, 1 Jul 2001 15:58:28 -0500 Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 15:58:28 -0500 Message-Id: <200107012058.PAA30448@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 #2285 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 Sunday, July 1 2001 Volume 01 : Number 2285 In this digest: Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot Re: IN> Iron Rev II: Results! Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot Re: IN> Iron Rev II: Results! Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. IN> I'm sorry. Again. IN> Re: Seraph resonance IN> Re: Gold-card/Gold-shield IN> Re: 2IC's Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot Re: IN> Iron Rev II: Results! Re: IN>Seraph Resonance Abuse Question Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. Re: IN> A new Archangel Re: IN> This Is NOT My Fault IN> Re: A Minor Tether of Dark Humor. IN> The Sorcerers' Tale - Vignette, Part I In Nomine Books (was Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes.) Re: In Nomine Books (was Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes.) Re: IN> Re: Gold-card/Gold-shield IN> The Angel of Hugs IN> Casting Call (NOT a submission) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 15:33:00 -0400 (EDT) From: "Rev. Pee Kitty" Subject: Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot On Sat, 30 Jun 2001, Rev. Pee Kitty wrote: > 2a. The actors being nominated must have been alive as of January 1st, > 2000. Dying after this point (even after the final voting) will not affect > their qualification for the casting call. So that means George Burns is *not* a valid entry. Sorry y'all. :) Maybe after this, someone can do another one allowing actors from any point in history... sort of an 'all-star' casting call. Humphry Bogart playing off of Arnold Schwarzenegger and all that... :) - -- Rev. Pee Kitty, of the order Malkavian-Dobbsian, Q4B4L! Meow! "I am the greatest man in the world; indeed I am SO great that I can afford great generosity: I encourage all others to adopt the DELUSION that they are as great as I. If they truly thought that they were themselves the greatest, they too would be as generous; and then we would all be able to HUMOR each other, in peace, for none would feel threatened by the now-harmless delusions of everyone else." -- Philo Drummond ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 14:25:07 -0400 From: "Eric Bertish" Subject: Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot > 2a. The actors being nominated must have been alive as of January 1st, > 2000. Dying after this point (even after the final voting) will not affect > their qualification for the casting call. Do you perhaps mean 2001? If not, I think I can sneak Desmond Llewellyn in.... - -- Casca ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 14:32:34 -0400 From: "Eric Bertish" Subject: Re: IN> Iron Rev II: Results! > This competition saw some heated differences in ratings sent in, and between > that and not every seed getting rated by every voter, the numbers got a > little wonky (as in something like 7 decimal places kind of wonky, in some > cases.) Wonky? Why not... (wait for it) ... Funky? > This makes Eric Bertish our Iron Rev in this round, so we shall have to > award him a white hat to go with that white suit he's dancing in. Woohoo! I want to thank everyone who voted for me, as give a hearty "Well done!" to everyone else in the contest. Not only are you all very creative, but you're sufficiently warped that it forced me to reach into reserves of perversity I didn't know I had. So in a way, you all contributed to my success, and I thank you for that. And now, I must go polish my rhinestones. ;) - -- Casca Boogie nights are always the best in town! ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 15:42:08 -0400 (EDT) From: "Rev. Pee Kitty" Subject: Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot On Sat, 30 Jun 2001, Eric Bertish wrote: > > 2a. The actors being nominated must have been alive as of January 1st, > > 2000. Dying after this point (even after the final voting) will not affect > > their qualification for the casting call. > > Do you perhaps mean 2001? If not, I think I can sneak XXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXX > in.... Please, don't even post a SINGLE nomination to the list, d00d. Beth has promised the most severe smackdown if this even leaks out a LITTLE. I'm allowed to take questions about the voting process and post clarifications in addition to my two 'approved' posts, and that's IT. I meant what I posted. If we're backtracking at all, might as well do it to a nice, round number. So actors dead for less than a year and half are going to be fair game. Any further than that, and they're out. Gotta cut it off somewhere, so we'll do it one year before the millenium. 2000. - -- Rev. Pee Kitty, of the order Malkavian-Dobbsian, Q4B4L! Meow! Though they broke my legs / They gave me a crutch to walk / Laws to guide me / And a crutch to walk. / Amen. -- Chumbawamba, "Today's Sermon" ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 14:36:58 -0400 From: "Eric Bertish" Subject: Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot > Please, don't even post a SINGLE nomination to the list, d00d. Beth has > promised the most severe smackdown if this even leaks out a LITTLE. I'm > allowed to take questions about the voting process and post clarifications > in addition to my two 'approved' posts, and that's IT. MY BAD! I committed the cardinal sin of thinking I was private replying when I in fact was not. I'm sorry, mea culpa. > I meant what I posted. If we're backtracking at all, might as well do it > to a nice, round number. So actors dead for less than a year and half are > going to be fair game. Any further than that, and they're out. Gotta cut > it off somewhere, so we'll do it one year before the millenium. 2000. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 13:56:22 -0500 From: "Erich S. Arendall" Subject: Re: IN> Iron Rev II: Results! > This competition saw some heated differences in ratings sent in, and between > that and not every seed getting rated by every voter, the numbers got a > little wonky (as in something like 7 decimal places kind of wonky, in some > cases.) ...Guess I shouldn't have voted for Eric's piece using pi squared, eh? - -- Erich S. Arendall "I'm a demon. I don't do the 'mercy' thing." http://www.egrigor.com/in-nomine/ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 20:49:42 +0100 From: "Dave" Subject: Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. - ----- Original Message ----- From: "EDG" To: Sent: Friday, June 29, 2001 7:14 PM Subject: Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. > Now, two comments: > > 1) Your post came through to me as black text on a pink background. This > smacks of HTML mail. DO NOT SEND HTML MAIL TO THE LIST. Plain text only, > please. http://www.sjgames.com/in-nomine/listrules.html is required reading. Which I read prior to subscribing and am fully aware of the penalties. Having posted before without these problems all I can suggest is that Vapula got involved somewhere along the line. > > 2) Your .sig is almost as long as your actual post. That's too long. Four > lines is a good limit. Almost as long. Not as long or longer. Almost as. Means it passes muster (just!) And anyway according to the above list rules I can send a sig at least once >:) > > -EDG But without wishing to send a post that merely retaliates to what seemed to me as a rather vicious "squash the newbie" post I have another question. Having recently got back into In Nomine I have decided to get the DPG and GMG. What other books would people suggest I get after these two. Dave (if this one comes out pink on black it means I have a gremlin). > ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 16:03:08 -0500 From: David Edelstein Subject: Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. Dave wrote: > But without wishing to send a post that merely retaliates to what seemed to> me as a rather vicious "squash the newbie" post I have another question. Nah, vicious "squash the newbie" posts are my department. ;) EDG is much nicer than me. Seriously, strictly jumping on people who post HTML, get carried away with .sigs, wander off-topic, etc., is a GOOD thing. I'm on several other lists where there are no such constraints, and 90% is unintelligible fluff. Yes, there is a "delete" key (and I use it often), but it's annoying trying to filter some useful information about cancer treatment out of a gazillion posts talking about rubber duckies and such. (Yes, I am referring to actual threads on another list.) (Btw, I just semi-involuntarily upgraded to Windows 2K, which _shouldn't_ have done anything to my Netscape Mail settings, but if _this_ message comes through in fruity colors or other verboten formatting, it's because the Gates-Demon has possessed my hard drive, so just let me know and I'll fix it -- after burning a few more Gates dolls in effigy). - -David ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 18:12:58 -0400 From: "Matthew Gerber" Subject: IN> I'm sorry. Again. Zig Ethereal Spirit Corporeal: 5 Strength: 10 Agility: 10 Ethereal: 3 Intelligence: 2 Precision: 10 Celestial: 6 Will: 12 Perception: 12 Skills: Fighting/6, Dodge/6, Large Weapon/6 (Laser) Songs: Light (All/6), Shields (All/6) Dominic really doesn't like to talk about this one. The way Zig got formed should be rather obvious. Thousands of college students and other such Internet cognoscenti with far too much time on their hands can, it turns out, rather easily create an Ethereal spirit whether they mean to or not. The fact that it rapidly developed Worship Rites involving uses of phrases like 'All Your Base' and "Somebody Set Up Us The Bomb" didn't hurt either. Zig, for its part, doesn't really know about this. It just knows that one day, it took off, and that it knew what it doing. It had to move toward bad things then shoot them until they went away. After it decided they looked just like bosses, a few Demons found out that it was really pretty good at shooting at bad things until they went away. Its appearance, of course, is a smallish spaceship with fighter-plane lines. (Don't ask why a spaceship would need fighter-plane lines. Just accept it as part of the source material, and move on. Otherwise, they might try to explain.) The Demons also found out the same thing Heaven would find out later: killing it didn't help any. There's more than one Zig. In fact, there's quite a few of them. And all of them want to move for... well... let's just say Dominic was less than amused when he heard about them after they heard about him. The Zigs have decided, one and all, that they serve Dominic. The fact that Dominic doesn't particularly want anything to do with them doesn't really have much bearing on the affair: they're not exactly the brightest of all creatures. All they know is he seems to be the greatest justice around, so what they want to do is move for him. Even worse, he can't *really* go off on a good screaming rant with them: doing that to such a simple creature whose intentions were so clearly sincere would clearly be punishing it more than its crime. So Dominic's stuck. Fortunately, it's not like there are enough of them to have any kind of *serious* effect on the War. There are just enough that Dominic's very annoyed when you mention them, Laurence is quietly debating whether to send in the Malakim or send in the Malakim to *help* them, and Michael is laughing his feathers off. In other words, just another day. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 11:17:07 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Re: Seraph resonance > Patrick Ley wrote: >> >> I KNOW I am SURE that this doesn't work: >> >> Bob the whatever and Clueless the Seraph wan't to find NastyBoy some demon they >> want to smite/stop/give AOL disks to. So Bob keeps saying "Nasty Boy is right >> behind you until Clueless rolls a CD 6 on his Resonance then POOF! Clueless >> Knows the Truth about where NastyBoy is. >> >> That obviously can't work so what does he get with a CD 6? > > He gets, "Bob Truly does not know where NastyBoy is." > > :-) Yes, but he'd get that on a CD of 5. So where's the difference? of course, Bob isn't trying to deceive Clueless (indirectly, he's trying to tell Clueless the Truth!), so I'd expect the statement to slip straight past the resonance, in the same way that dyeing your hair for a change of pace won't register - that's how I've handled this sort of situation in my games. James. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 10:59:18 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Re: Gold-card/Gold-shield > Thoughts/Comments?? Useful. Very Useful. I have this lovely mental image of Soldiers of Hell finding out how well their opposite numbers are treated - preferably after one of their number has been toasted by a Calabite "just because". And then learning what's involved in jumping ship. :-) James. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 11:11:44 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Re: 2IC's > - --- Genevieve Cogman wrote: > >> I don't think that Michael does have an official >> 2ic, no -- nor even an >> unofficial one. Laurence, on the other hand... >> >> Genevieve Cogman >> > > Heh. I'm drawing a blank on Larry's official 2ic... > > Moe Well, I wrote up the Angel of Hussars for the sidekicks "competition" last year. Aren't the entries floating around the INC or somewhere? James. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 12:17:09 +1000 From: "Shane" Subject: Re: IN> "Official" In Nomine Casting Call - The Ballot On 30 Jun 2001, 15:29, Rev. Pee Kitty wrote: > Afraid that dead people don't act very well, so this nomination is limited > to living people only. It's _In Nomine_. Since when does Corporeal death truly stop anyone? :) (okay, undead excluded ;p) Cheers, Shane. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 30 Jun 2001 22:10:17 -0500 From: "Prodigal" Subject: Re: IN> Iron Rev II: Results! From: "Eric Bertish" > > Wonky? Why not... > > (wait for it) > > ... Funky? Because it made my head hurt worse than your suggestion, that's why. ;p ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 13:57:15 +1000 From: "Shane" Subject: Re: IN>Seraph Resonance Abuse Question On 29 Jun 2001, 12:34, Rev. Pee Kitty wrote: > On Fri, 29 Jun 2001, Patrick Ley wrote: > > > Bob the whatever and Clueless the Seraph wan't to find NastyBoy some > > demon they want to smite/stop/give AOL disks to. So Bob keeps saying > > "Nasty Boy is right behind you until Clueless rolls a CD 6 on his > > Resonance then POOF! Clueless Knows the Truth about where NastyBoy is. > > > > That obviously can't work so what does he get with a CD 6? > No, it doesn't work, otherwise no Archangel would ever have to wonder > about the actions of *any* non-Superior. (Dominic would just have an angel > read the list of charges as if they were true and resonate away - no need > to even bring the angel in!) The consensus ruling is that the person > speaking must have SOME connection to the Truth to get anything even > remotely useful... otherwise you get as much of the Truth as that person > is connected to. The trouble with this is one gets people asking "but doesn't The Symphony connect everything?", which I'd like to avoid because AFAIK (canonically at least) they're right. But I think there's an alternative answer: Superiors, whether present or just involved in a situation, obfuscate resonances - the stronger the Superior involvement, the fuzzier it gets, even more so if they don't want to be resonated. So it stands to reason that such a tenuous connection to the Truth could be completely fuzzed by the distant involvement and/or opposition of the Other Side's Superiors (in this case, one or more Demon Princes, plus ultimately Lucifer). This can still apply even if the Truth concerns one's own allies, simply because the Other Side wants it that way. So a CD 6 would be: "Bob's lying (CD1) entirely about Nasty's location (CD2) in the hope that it will reveal the Truth (CD3), as he believes he has no idea where Nasty is located (CD4). He indeed does not know the Truth (CD5), which is that Nasty is... *answer blocked* (CD6)." Or in brief, "You can't find out where Nasty is. And Bob lied to you. On purpose." :) What higher CDs canonically do (eg via Seraphim of Judgement attunement) I don't know, as I only have the core book. In my games, a CD of 6 just gives the very basic Truth ("the butler did it"), while higher CDs give more detailed Truth or *may* ferret out tiny bits of Truth past any fuzziness - at least enough to get the players moving again, anyway. "you know 'Hoover' is somehow involved, but you've no idea whether that refers to the former FBI director, the hydroelectric dam, or a vacuum cleaner company..." Regardless, lying for any reason is frowned upon by Seraphim, even though it's only dissonant if they do it themselves. Encouraging someone else to lie is risky for Seraphim - the road to hell is paved, it has been said, with good intentions. Shane. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 01:02:39 -0500 From: EDG Subject: Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes. At 08:49 PM 6/30/01 +0100, you wrote: >But without wishing to send a post that merely retaliates to what seemed to >me as a rather vicious "squash the newbie" post I have another question. I can do "squash the newbie", if you like. That was more of a "die, HTML-posting heathen scum" post. ;) (And David's right. ;) You also seem to have ignored the fact that I did, in fact, actually answer your question. Let's see if you catch this one: >Having recently got back into In Nomine I have decided to get the DPG and >GMG. What other books would people suggest I get after these two. Personally? I'd recommend Superiors 3. About five copies should do it. ;) Truthfully, it depends on what sort of game you intend to run, and whether you're writing the world yourself or whether you want source material. The Revelations Cycle, while (I think) out of print, does have many Superior writeups that haven't been remade as Superiors books. It also has a LOT of source material on Heaven and Hell that hasn't been reprinted elsewhere. The Corporeal Player's Guide (I hope I'm getting these apostrophes right) revamps the rules for mortals from Rev Cycle, making them actually usable. It's also got oodles of other good stuff if you intend to run Soldier- or mundane-heavy games. The Libri (Liber Reliquarum/Canticorum/Castellorum/Servitorum) are essentially vast tomes of source material for their various subjects (Relics and artifacts/Songs/Tethers/various Servitors). You Are Here, while technically not one of the Libri by virtue of its title (although it - -was- tentatively titled Liber Locorum, as I recall), also fits into this category, highlighting various places around the Symphony (Heaven, Hell, Earth, and - IIRC - the Marches). The Superiors books offer expanded writeups for many of the Archangels and Demon Princes (I believe we've seen eight AAs (Blandine, David, Dominic, Gabriel, Khalid (introduced in the Revelations cycle), Laurence, Michael, Yves) and nine DPs (most of whom I don't remember at the moment, by virtue of my books being elsewhere). These are the books currently in progress/on hold, along with... The Ethereal Player's Guide is an unknown quantity at the moment, save to a select few, 'cos it hasn't been published yet. ;) The Angelic Player's Guide, IMHO, is something you should hold off on until you've gotten everything else you want. ...don't recall any others off the top of my head. And remember, these are only my opinions, and don't represent the feelings or opinions of anyone else, especially Steve Jackson Games, Incorporated. (Beth and SJ do that schtick.) Cheers, EDG ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 02:32:44 -0400 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> A new Archangel At 9:04 AM -0400 6/28/01, Cameron McCurry wrote: > No one saw this coming. [...] Well, almost no one. >Belial, Archangel of Cleansing http://www.annotations.com/innomine/characters/superiors/archbelial.html Great minds, they think alike, eh? - -- Eric Alfred Burns - Habbalite of Belaboring the Point ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 03:30:47 -0400 From: Kirt Dankmyer Subject: Re: IN> This Is NOT My Fault Daiv wrote: > Watching Iron Chef last night, with my wife and Phillip D. > (also a list boy). And as it begins, Phillip looks to me, and > says, "Chairman Kaga. So that's what Eli has been up to for the > last five years or so." No, no no, you have it all wrong. He's Lucifer. Look at him. Look at the smile he gives when he bites into that pepper. Pure evil. "I'll swallow your soul" kind of evil. Hmmm, I need to do a writup based on that idea at some point. -Loki ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 19:42:43 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Re: A Minor Tether of Dark Humor. When Dark Humor needs a stronger presence in a region, this minor, mobile Tether is ideal. The Tether takes the form of a old fashioned hand basket, which has been enchanted as an Indestructible, Summonable Talisman (Savoir-Faire)/1. the artifact is owned by a Marquis of Dark Humor who will 'recall' it if it is captured by the Host. The Tether is 'Windy'; travelling to Earth takes 3 times as long as usual. Also, it's quite small, never having more than 5 Word-Forces and usually only 1 or 2. It has a strange quality - at some point in the past Baal's 'Jinx' attunement has been used on the basket, and has not worn off; further the Tethers' Influence, although weak, encourages chaos in the vicinity. Additionally, Ghosts who enter the Locus of the Tether, or Dreamshades/Saints who go to sleep with their heads in the basket, will be drawn down the Tether. The lower Locus of the Tether is directly outside the Gates of Hell - [repeated attempts by Kobal have failed to move it elsewhere] so the Angels of Final Judgement prevent the inappropriate damnation of humans by this Tether. While holding the basket, any Symphonically Aware being has access to the following rites: trigger a chaotic event; hear the Tether's creation phrase used by a mundane ignorant of the War; catch the head of a beheaded, damned human in the basket [+3 essence]. Being demonic rites, using them will cause an angel dissonance. The Tether's defenders tend not to last long; killing the Seneschal is the favourite hobby of several Malakim. Becoming the Tether's attuned Seneschal for a few months is a common punishment for Pranksters who've bungled a task but whom Kobal is prepared to give another chance. The Seneschal (only) is unaffected by the Jinx attunement. the Seneschal is not always a demon, of course. Ethereals, Sorcerers, Soldiers of Hell, and on one memorable occasion an angelic remnant have all been attuned Seneschals at some point. Some have even enjoyed the experience. James. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 19:57:33 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> The Sorcerers' Tale - Vignette, Part I Sorry this has taken so long to do - I stalled half way through. Thanks to Horsefly for encouraging me to comtinue! Hopefully the second part will follow shortly. James. ======================================================================== Stupid Slug-Rat felt that he was really on the fast track. A four syllable name was a rarity among demonlings, and he made a point of punishing any lesser gremlin who tried to just call him 'slug-rat', or even worse, 'ratty'. He couldn't stop demons from calling him whatever they wanted, of course, but most seemed keen to add 'stupid' to his name. Probably because they knew that he would be joining their ranks soon, he thought happily. He grinned. What luck that the foolish sorceress had thought to challenge him to a Will-War! What luck that she had not realised that Stupid was part of his name! And now he was stronger; Hatiphas herself had granted him her attunement, and assured him that he was Fated to be Summoned by another Sorcerer. If he could ensure the corruption of the Sorcerer, the rewards would be great. Stupid Slug-Rat wandered Shal-Mari, his head aching, despite his happiness. Hatiphas had mentioned in passing the importance of reading, so he had began bullying the damned into teaching him to read. But it didn't make sense. He'd learn a symbol, and then show it to another soul, who wouldn't recognise it and say that a completely different symbol stood for the sound he had been told. And some humans insisted that the symbols should run from left to right, others from top to bottom; he had punished the first few, thinking that they were trying to trick him, but now he was sure that they were all insane. But he'd work it out - he was Fated for great things. *Stupid Slug-rat* The Call wrapped itself around his mind, and sank into his soul, granting him both the ability and need to respond. His Infernal nature cried out against this, that this should be his choice - but no choice. Merely the need to respond. Still, he was only a demonling; soon he would be a demon and enforce his will on sorcerers, rather than the other way around. He began to run. He dodged through the crowded streets. Humans parted, cringing away; he had to veer around demons, but they choose not to harass him; his purposeful movement implied that he was a messenger, and they would not annoy his superior without cause. The crowds faded as he ran towards the river Acheron. He ran onto a jetty, searching for the ship he was being drawn towards. The Black Lotus, maybe? But there was no ship, only the river - polluted, twisted, smelling like a bachelors' fridge during a summer power cut. Stupid Slug-Rat tried to stop running but could not. He sailed out over the river, trying to run on the air - until he plunged into the river with a squelching splash. The river pulled him under, and then spat him out. He was travelling upwards, away from Hell, back to the Corporeal. A Tether in the River? That was possible? Stupid Slug-Rat grinned. Now that he was on the fast-track, he'd learn many secrets. And he had arrived. The Tether had formed around a large jagged hole in the prow of a wooden ship. Surrounding the Locus and flooded with seawater was a supernatural globe, maintained by gremlins bound into the planks of the ship. Three individuals faced the globe; the central figure with a blazing Aura which no human could possess. Stupid Slug-Rat was drawn closer to the central figure by the Summoning; which meant that he was human. How the? Oh, of course.... "Hail mighty Corruptor!" the demonling piped from his cat vessel ".. Seneschal" he added, fearing punishment if he failed to use an impressive title. "How may I serve?" The voice which replied was clearly inhuman, confirming his guess. 'I tire of this sorcerer. Overcome his Will, that you may command him for me.' Stupid Slug-Rat grinned. A servant of his own! He felt the challenge issued by the Sorcerer, accepted - and then blanched as the Shedite possessor struck him with a Song of Charm, stripping away his Will. What the? The sorcerer spoke: "Fortunately, this gremlin won't be intelligent enough to" there was a flare of essence being spent "*yield the contest* and rechallenge once the Song has worn off". An excellent idea! Stupid Slug-Rat immediately yielded. "Re-challenge me now" the Sorcerer ordered. Stupid Slug-Rat tried to resist, but could not. No matter: he re-challenged as commanded, and immediately yielded. "Again" the Sorcerer commanded, and Stupid Slug-Rats' mind finally cleared enough to realise how he had been tricked. He re-challenged, and attempted to fight, but found himself yielding against his Will. He slumped, defeated, his mind completely bent to the desires of this strange sorcerer. The sorcerer stepped forward, removing the bracelet which he wore as a collar - the bracelet he had taken from the sorceress, less than a week ago. Things had been so pleasant then. They were less pleasant now. The sorcerer ordered him to travel to Limbo, creating a new, human Vessel - but paying the cost in painful Discords. Now he was Bound to the bracelet, Obsessed with obeying the Sorcerer, and Feared the Sorcerers' disapproval. He shivered kneeling before his deadly master, anxious despite himself to serve faithfully. "Now " the Sorcerer began "you will tell me how you acquired this bracelet. In detail." 'An exoress..Ouch! I'm sorry, Master! So Sorry...' The Sorcerer ceased kicking the demonling: "Exorcist is gender neutral, slave" he said in a bored voice "Continue." Slug Rat wasn't sure what a gender was, so decided to plunge on without correcting his earlier words. 'gave it to me after losing a duel of the mind with me. ' "She had Summoned you?" 'No master. I had been ordered to watch a specific building, and remain completely hidden. She somehow realised I was there, and offered the Will-War as a way for me to avoid being punished by my boss. Fortunately she got my name wrong, so I was able to win. I thought that the bracelet would be valuable, something I could use to become more powerful...' "What did you do with the Sorceress?" Stupid Slug-Rat shivered. He'd hoped to avoid this. 'I wasn't sure how to use her abilities, so I ordered her to Summon lady Hatiphas, and gave the Sorceress to the Baroness as a gift. She rewarded me, and then sent me back to Shal-Mari, saying that I would be Summoned by a sorcerer, and that if I could arrange his corruption I would be made a full demon...' He trailed off. The Sorcerer paused, and then his hand went to his face, removing the dark glasses he had seized from a Vapulan long ago. Stupid Slug-Rat whimpered as he looked into his masters eyes - steel-grey was not that unusual, but only one sorcerer had the light of the sun blazing where his pupils should be. 'Master? Your Lordship?' The Grey-Eyed Lord of Noon spoke to the gremlin for the second last time. "And what did Hatiphas say about the Sorceress? What were her plans for your...gift?" His annoyance was obvious, and Slug-Rat shivered, scared out of his wits. 'She was Summoning Prince Andre while I was leaving, my lord.' His master paused, then: "I see. Is there anything else that you can tell me, before I send you back through the Tether?" The demonling thought, as hard as his limited mind could. 'I don't think so, your lordship. Unless you are interested in my old boss? I haven't seen him since then; he serves Media..' His Master shook his head, and pointed at the Tether behind the demonling. Stupid Slug Rat moved towards the swirling ball of water, easily leaving his body. 'What do you wish me to do in Hell, my lord?' The Sorcerer shook his head, then spoke to his companions "Prevent him from using your Forks." Stupid Slug-Rat didn't understand at first; then as he felt himself tugged downwards, he 'bounced', unable to return to Hell. The Tether flowed around him, dragging him sideways - and he 'bounced' again. Finally, the Tether seemed to know where it was taking him. He was dragged UP, and the ship was replaced by searing light, tearing him apart. He probably screamed. No one will ever know. The Grey Eyed Lord of Noon stood quietly. In front of him the ball swirled, the rolling seawater threatening to engulf the ship, as it had over thirty eight centuries ago. The demonlings' remnant appeared in the ball, struggling futilely. Good, no threat of it being questioned about his base of operations. It could drown without his supervision; an Infernals' death would not normally strengthen a Tether, but the handful of ghosts who had survived the centuries would be reliving their own watery deaths, and feeding the tether. In the back of his mind he could feel the Seneschal enjoying the flowering of his Word. 'Grey', as he was known to his handful of friends, decided to return to the deck of the Ariadne. Quinremes were first built by the Romans. 'Grey' was content for this to be considered a historical fact. After all, if you insist on pointing out everything which Daedalus had built centuries earlier, you'd never get anything done. The Ariadne had been his greatest achievement, named after the kings' daughter and the mightiest ship imagined. If king Minos had 'remembered' the traditional sacrifices due to Poseidon, the ship would have survived her maiden voyage, instead of being lost with all hands. As Grey recalled, it had been the loss of the ship which had turned the Princess into a rebel, as everyone considered her name to be jinxed. More importantly, the gaping hole in the prow had become a forked Tether for Vephar and Poseidon. Grey had still been a youngster then, barely a century old. With a daring which experience knew as stupidity, he had challenged the Shedite Seneschal, gaining control of the Tether. Fortunately Vephar was fighting for his life at the time, and never cared to investigate. It had been a heroic task to repair the ship without endangering the Tether. And well rewarded; once he had the ship afloat, he had been able to influence the nature of the Tether sufficiently to connect it to Heaven, and be granted the Seneschal attunement by Oannes. Now that Vephar and Oannes were dead, and Poseidon officially banished from the Corporeal Plane by the Purity Crusade, the Araidne was a secret closely guarded by the handful who knew of her existence. Did Hatiphas know? Or Kronos? It was unlikely, he mused. They were newcomers; he had established himself before Kronos had entered Hell, as had all of the Dozen. Andrealphus? Possibly. He knew all too many secrets; had Hatiphas guessed that he feared Andrealphus more than any other Prince? There were too many variables. He knew the motivation of Hatiphas in this, of course. He had learned his Fate long ago. Grey paced the decks of the Araidne. The galley was manned by demonlings - -and demons - who plied the oars with the easy experience born of three millennia. They were aided by Shedim of Theft, billowing in the sails, while shark fins cut the water surrounding the ship, the only indication of the demons who guarded the ship's hull. More obvious were the countless birds who circled the ship, patrolling. The raw might available to him was truly impressive, granting him servants with every attunement known to Hell, and all common Songs. And they didn't stand a chance against a Demon Prince. Grimacing, Grey continued to pace the decks. Finding his target, he barked out a swift order "re-check and confirm my Fate". There was a flare of essence, and the demon spoke, still rowing with all his might: 'to outlive all of your known relatives'. Grey nodded. It was unlikely to have changed, but checking was the cautious thing to do, and for him caution was a long habit. It was a strange Fate, and one which had caused him no end of grief. Preventing it required spending entirely to much time protecting and training young idiots who he inevitably started to care for, costing time that would be much better spent ruling his Servants or researching the Art. To be fair, every few generations someone was born who had some potential, or interesting capabilities: Makrathumia was one of the best - and the last. And now Hell had her. Worse, Andre did. Which meant he needed allies. Around him the Symphony rang, and he vanished. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 10:44:50 -0400 From: "Matthew Gerber" Subject: In Nomine Books (was Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes.) - ----- Original Message ----- From: "EDG" > >Having recently got back into In Nomine I have decided to get the DPG and > >GMG. What other books would people suggest I get after these two. > Personally? I'd recommend Superiors 3. About five copies should do it. ;) I've been meaning to ask: if someone honestly couldn't care less about the mechanics of the d666 system, but wants source material for the fictional world and a basic reference to the common Attunements and the like, where does _GURPS: In Nomine_ fit in? How much does it cover, particularly in relation to the main _In Nomine_ volume? Matt ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 15:54 +0100 (BST) From: jgd@cix.co.uk (John Dallman) Subject: Re: In Nomine Books (was Re: IN> Ch-ch-ch-changes.) In article <002201c1023c$61eed560$6401a8c0@polaris>, mgerber@cfl.rr.com (Matthew Gerber) wrote: > I've been meaning to ask: if someone honestly couldn't care less about > the mechanics of the d666 system, but wants source material for the > fictional world and a basic reference to the common Attunements and the > like, where does _GURPS: In Nomine_ fit in? It supplies all of that. It contains essentially everything in the main IN rulebook, plus a bunch of details and corrections. - --- John Dallman jgd@cix.co.uk ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 15:27:22 From: "Jo Hart" Subject: Re: IN> Re: Gold-card/Gold-shield >From: "james walker" >Reply-To: in_nomine-l@lists.io.com >To: in_nomine-l@lists.io.com >Subject: IN> Re: Gold-card/Gold-shield >Date: Sun, 01 Jul 2001 10:59:18 +1100 > > > Thoughts/Comments?? >Useful. Very Useful. > >I have this lovely mental image of Soldiers of Hell finding out how well >their opposite numbers are treated You don't think soldiers of Hell get perks? Come on, it's only corporeal money, drugs, sex, fame, power .... jo _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 18:18 +0100 (BST) From: jgd@cix.co.uk (John Dallman) Subject: IN> The Angel of Hugs Only in Flowers... well, yes. But that doesn't mean it doesn't /work/. Gwendoline Cherub of Flowers Angel of Hugs Corporeal 3, Strength 4, Agility 8. Ethereal 4, Intelligence 6, Precision 10. Celestial 5, Perception 12, Will 9*. Attunments: Cherub of Flowers, Mercurian of Flowers, Seraph of Flowers, Vassal of Flowers, Friend of the Gardeners, Angel of Hugs. Skills: Artistry/2, Detect Lies/6, Driving/1, Emote/4, Fast-Talk 1, Medicine/6, Move Silently/1, Psychology/5, Savoir-Faire/2, Singing/1, Swimming/1, Tracking/1. Songs: Dreams (3/1/1), Harmony (3/2/2), Healing (6/4/4), Tongues (4/6/5). Vessel: Large, cuddly mixed-race human female/2. Gwendoline was assigned by Novalis to work on this word, simply because, although Novalis is the best comforter in the universe, she doesn't have time to do it all. Gwendoline and her servitors are serious non- combatants; their job is to nurse angels who've had traumatic experiences (Not limited to Trauma) and humans who come to their attention who need special help. Hugs can be metaphorical, or corporeal, but when in doubt, the latter is applied. Angel of Hugs: While in physical contact, Songs and skills that are intended to help their subject have +3 to target numbers and check digits. Using the Celestial Song of Tongues, Gwendoline can give celestials in Trauma essence to be used on Will rolls for leaving Trauma. - --- John Dallman jgd@cix.co.uk ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Jul 2001 16:58:56 -0400 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: IN> Casting Call (NOT a submission) > Afraid that dead people don't act very well, so this nomination is limited > to living people only. Actually N.J (Saint of War) acts very well and she frankly is more than alittle off put by this whole human o centric work that your puttting out. Vincent Price has been creeping around for years waiting to play Saminga and John Belushi is just ready as ever to voice Haagenti. Tsk Tsk Tsk. It's a game about the Exalted and the Damned, let's add the dead to the list - -Charlie ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #2285 ******************************** The material here is (C) 2001 Steve Jackson Games, Incorporated. All rights reserved.