From owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Tue Dec 26 01:59:42 2000 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 BAA02959 for ; Tue, 26 Dec 2000 01:59:42 -0600 Received: (from majordom@localhost) by lists.io.com (8.9.3/8.9.1a) id BAA18224 for in_nomine-digest-outgoing; Tue, 26 Dec 2000 01:59:49 -0600 Date: Tue, 26 Dec 2000 01:59:49 -0600 Message-Id: <200012260759.BAA18224@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 #1990 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 Tuesday, December 26 2000 Volume 01 : Number 1990 In this digest: IN> Fwd: bull@echostation.com Re: IN> RE: in_nomine-digest V1 #1988 Re: IN> Arisia Re: IN> GURPS In-Nomine Re: IN> Arisia Re: IN> Angels in hell IN> Heroes in Hell series IN> Christmas Story Seed Re: IN> Arisia IN>Happy Holidays! IN> CONTEST: Christmas In Nomine IN> The Gentleman Sorceror Re: IN> The Gentleman Sorceror Re: IN> Arisia Re: IN> Arisia Re: IN> Arisia Re: IN> Dominic-sama kawaii desu ne! IN> The Torches ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 10:58:00 -0500 From: Elizabeth McCoy Subject: IN> Fwd: bull@echostation.com >Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 01:46:52 -0600 >Subject: BOUNCE in_nomine-l@lists.io.com: Header field too long (>1024) > >Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 02:45:39 -0500 >To: [A whole bunch of people, including Lilith and Loki and a Sprite...] >From: Bull >Subject: Merry Christmas! > >Well, it's that time of year again. Time for well wishing, for cheer, >happiness, 6 feet of snow, and family gatherings. Some of you I talk to >almost daily, and some of you I haven't talked to or seen in ages. But >everyone is in my heart and mind this Christmas Season. > >Here's to wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year, and >cheers to the end of the Holiday Shopping! :] > >Bull > >PS -- My apologies to those recieving this more than once because of lists >and stuff :] > >_______________________________________________ >Why pay for something you could get for free? >NetZero provides FREE Internet Access and Email >http://www.netzero.net/download/index.html > ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 11:00:54 -0500 From: Elizabeth McCoy Subject: Re: IN> RE: in_nomine-digest V1 #1988 At 9:37 AM +0000 12/25/00, Adam Benedict Canning wrote: >> From: "Charles Glasgow" >>> From: "Michael" >> Actually, I can see it. There's the song of Concealment (I >> think - don't >> have my LC with me) that allows you to mask your celestial >> form. >Other possibilities [mostly Slightly Obscure.] > >1] IIRC The French Archangel of Chaos's servitor Atunements are >2] Balseraphs of Fate look like the Choir whose attunement they have. >3] Fiat Justitia's Vessel Form trick. >4] There is evidence for a certain mutability in Celestial Form. Many Just remember that none of these four tricks work in canon. (No AA of Chaos, and celestial nature is always apparent to all but the most stupid celestial beings, _as well as_ whatever "vesselform" is being worn. At the same time. Celestial perceptions aren't like human ones...) However, as house rules, they can be useful. - --Beth, typing w/a uncoopertive baby (iolanthe) causing typos. "I'm nursing a TROUT! With legs!" ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 11:32:07 -0500 From: Jason Schneiderman Subject: Re: IN> Arisia >> We *might* be talked into doing an IN game; that can be worked around the >> baby to a sufficient extent, and Elizabeth's feeling gaming-deprived.... > >If nothing else, we clearly need an IN-List dinner at some point. I'm all over that. The Park Plaza is close to some decent places... and there's going to be a BG-list dinner at some point as well. yours, thinking on this, * * * * * Jason Schneiderman jadasc@ma.ultranet.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 12:01:20 -0500 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> GURPS In-Nomine On 12/25/00 10:46 AM, "Elizabeth McCoy" alleged: > At 10:24 PM -0500 12/24/00, Perry Lloyd wrote: >>> No clue. O:> My _suspicions_ are that it was to aid in the cinematic feel >>> of the game -- your character _could_ die, and only be out of the action >>> a week or so, gametime. This makes players more likely to sacrifice a >>> character for the party (or just because it'll be the biggest explosion >>> in the city of X), without actually having to create a new character. >> >> Not that any of my players are willing to let their characters die (I had to >> purposely kill one of the two malakim before they were even really willing >> to consider it). > > Well, our first character death was when Eric ran a little something > and the Malakite (who got hit with a blinding Song) discovered that he was > in front of a speeding truck. Oops. > > But he brought back reinforcements and saved the day! And gave me the idea > for Malakanaries! > A game which also included *my* favorite use of attunement/song/power. Namely, the Celestial Song of... hm. Machines? (In Maine without books, so I'm flying by memory.) It makes a corporeal device a Celestial artifact, temporarily. So, the Renegade Lilim slapped her hand on the Gigantic Macguffin, Sang the Song... and the player smiled at me and said "Celestial Artifacts have no weight on the Celestial Realm. I go Celestial and carry the device to the roof." There are disadvantages for running games with the people who wrote them. Still, I was too impressed by the hurling of the Macguffin onto the demons below to really disallow it. (Next time, I'll just *plan* for it.) - -- Eric A. Burns - in-sabre@annotations.com - http://www.annotations.com Whistling in the Dark "It was then I felt my heart break like a fragile Scooby Snack upon the harsh teeth of Reality -- and it's been broken ever since." - --Johnny Bravo ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 12:04:31 -0500 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> Arisia On 12/25/00 11:32 AM, "Jason Schneiderman" alleged: >>> We *might* be talked into doing an IN game; that can be worked around the >>> baby to a sufficient extent, and Elizabeth's feeling gaming-deprived.... >> >> If nothing else, we clearly need an IN-List dinner at some point. > > I'm all over that. The Park Plaza is close to some decent places... and > there's going to be a BG-list dinner at some point as well. > You realize that as the native, we're in your hands, Jason. My days of living in Boston were.... My God, I'm *that* old? Feh. You kids today with your palm pilots and your hip hop and baggy pants.... - -- Eric A. Burns - in-sabre@annotations.com - http://www.annotations.com Whistling in the Dark "You will find it a very good practice always to verify your references, sir." - --Martin Joseph Routh, from the memoir by J.W. Burgon ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 12:07:23 -0500 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> Angels in hell On 12/25/00 10:46 AM, "Elizabeth McCoy" alleged: > At 1:26 PM -0600 12/24/00, Michael wrote: > [...] >> that out of place. Third, an Elohi[te] can not allow himself to be controlled >> by his emotions, but IMO, he can have them and show them. > > That's not just YO, that's canon. (However, if _showing_ them would be > bad for the Symphony in the long run, he can't. If showing them is neutral, > he can if he wishes, and if it's good, he MUST.) > Of course, it's also canon that if using the Emote skill to show the *opposite* of his true emotions is best for the Symphony, he must do *that* as well. I'm reminded of James Bond angrily telling Fatima Blush that what he did with her was for Queen and Country, and certainly not for pleasure.... - -- Eric A. Burns - in-sabre@annotations.com - http://www.annotations.com Whistling in the Dark "It was then I felt my heart break like a fragile Scooby Snack upon the harsh teeth of Reality -- and it's been broken ever since." - --Johnny Bravo ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 00:48:10 -0800 From: "Glenn Brown" Subject: IN> Heroes in Hell series Merry Christmas, Everyone! The "Heroes in Hell" anthologies and novels were edited by Janet Morris. The first one was published in 1986. They could provide the background for a very interesting, albeit non canon, humanocentric, hell based campaign. The interesting thing about Heroes in Hell is that there are very few demons in Hell. And practically every famous historical figure you ever heard of went to Hell, even those who would almost automatically go to Heaven in most In Nomine campaigns. This means the human souls mostly manage their own affairs, unless they end up in the Lower Hells. Many humans still follow the leaders who they supported in life, so (for example) many of the Roman damned are led by Julius Caesar and Augustus. Dante, Sargon of Akkad, Cleopatra and Machiavelli are more or less permanent guests in Augustus's villa. On the other side of the Park from Augustus 's villa, Napoleon and the Duke of Wellington share a modest home. Napoleon spends most of his time studying Hell's unbelievably convoluted legal code, looking for a loophole that will allow him to escape from Hell, until forces beyond his control force him to overthrow Louis the Fourteenth, and take over the leadership of the French in Hell. If you have GURPS Who's Who volumes one and two, just assume everyone in those books has gone to Hell, and you'll start to get a sense of how a Heroes in Hell campaign might work. Lucifer is in overall control of this version of Hell. Marilyn Monroe is his private secretary. The Administration led by Lucifer does like to play hellish little games on the human inhabitants of Hell. For example, Brutus suddenly shows up at Augustus's villa thousands of years after the rest of them got there, lacking any knowledge of anything which happened before his seventeenth birthday on Earth. And it turns out that Brutus is really Julius Caesar's illegitimate son. If you wanted to fit all this into an In Nomine context, you could borrow an idea from Dante, and suggest that one part of Hell isn't as bad as the rest. In the Divine Comedy, the virtuous pagans inhabited the outermost circle of Hell, and were largely untortured. (Except for being separated from God). Suppose the older souls in Hell tend to be somewhat better treated than most of the newer ones? ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 12:41:37 -0600 (CST) From: Benjamin Acosta Subject: IN> Christmas Story Seed In honor of the Holidays, here's a little Christmas Story Seed that you could use to grow an adventure. It's can be run for both sides, and possibly mixed parties. According to unconfirmed reports, Archangel Gabriel is going around gathering angels to form a celestial chorus in order to announce the birth of the savior in the PC's local. Since they know the area best, they're assigned to help investigate what's really going on. Is it really Gabriel? If not, then who is it and why? If so, is she just having flashbacks due to her current mental state? Or is the savior really going to be reborn in their town? Depending on the campaign, any possibility could be used as the Truth. One could also approach the situation from other angles rather than an assigned investigation. An angel asks one of them if they would like to be a part of the choir Garbriel is gathering. Or they find out when Gabriel and choir (or whovever) appears before some people and announces the time and place of the birth. For soldiers, they could even be in the crowd of people when the choir appears before them. Ditto for angels and demons. And just exactly who are these three White Sorcerors bearing gifts, and how did they know where to show up? It's definitely going to be a Christmas to remember. Ben, Elohite of Eli Angel of Neat Ideas ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 13:51:02 -0500 From: Jason Schneiderman Subject: Re: IN> Arisia >On 12/25/00 11:32 AM, "Jason Schneiderman" alleged: >> I'm all over that. The Park Plaza is close to some decent places... and >> there's going to be a BG-list dinner at some point as well. > >You realize that as the native, we're in your hands, Jason. Native? Bite your tongue. I'm a displaced New Yorker. I've only been here... three years? >My God, I'm *that* old? Feh. You kids today with your palm pilots and your >hip hop and baggy pants.... *laugh* So - if I were to announce an IN List , who'd come besides myself and Eric? Beth & Walter? Any other visitors? * * * * * Jason Schneiderman jadasc@ma.ultranet.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 12:19:19 -0800 From: Charles E Smith Subject: IN>Happy Holidays! Happy Holidays everyone! :D ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 17:20:51 -0500 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: IN> CONTEST: Christmas In Nomine This season has really got me in the mood and in celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ (and for those who have differntiating believes...goodness and peace toward all men) I would like to propose a contest to make items related to the Christmas spirit from adventures to Angels. We've already had many a good entry for inspiration from Santa Malakim to A very Nybbas Christmas but I want to continue the tradition... Let me start the bat off with something I'm going to spring on my players. ADVENTURE SEED "Oh little town of New jersey" Or "Silent Night, Holy Night...or Unholy...no Holy. I think" Kobal alternatively loves and loathes Christmas with a passion that would shock the Grinch and Nybbas together. On one hand he finds it amusing that Mammon, Nybbas, and even Malphas have wonderfully profited from the holiday and that God found himself the gall to be born in a stable (if it was true...the unknowing makes it funny) but on some level the holiday just makes him queasy. Then that Prince of Dark Humor had a terrible plan to strike at the very heart of the Christmas spirit. Madeline Mary Crane is a mental institution patient who suffers from depression in deep fits but also is a victem of child abuse her entire life that she can't reasonably survive in the outside world herself but she has a quality that makes all the staff at the hospital and many patients love her...she is completely good, trusting, and an innoncent. For Kobal's plan these qualities made her perfect. Appearing to her as an angel of the Lord Kobal used all of his foul power and self restraint to lay his seed with the song of fruitation within her and inform her she had been chosen to rebear the son of God within her....Madeline was indeed delighted and very grateful...too awed with the experience and naive to see beyond kobal's trick and now proudly proclaims the birth of the savior who will be born indeed on the day. Here is where Kobal intends his humor to begin as the information is already leaked to Heaven and various factions in Hell. Of course nobody in the Heavengly or Hellish Heirachy REALLY believes that this is going to be the Son of God, they get these kinduv calls all the time and are fairly certain they won't be taken...err..unawares again. However Heaven as usual sends a team to investigate the goings on just in case. Hell as well who have the usual orders if they think this is something angelic. Kobal has also manipulated a sorceror of his for the occasion, a very rich and wealthy man to believe this truly IS the Son of the Almighty returned to bring peace on Earth and in the usual fashion of sorcerors cannot see beyond his own fate in which Kobal has said is sealed should the King come to be. Our Herod for this piece. From the young hospital volenteer who is in love with Madeline (of course named Joseph) to a gang of Davidian bikers who are willing to shepard the gal and her would be husband to the farm barn where they must take refuge to the three Ignias Sorcerors of Gabrielle who are old enemies of our "Herod" and believe that he's too smart to be taken in by a false messiah to well....the angels. Either Kobal or someone "else" is making certain that this holiday has a certain familarity to it. The ideal ending to this tale is the birth of the young child as everyone gathers in awe and peace before the perfect him...or her. And Kobal realizes under the light of a Godly intervention and as a new tether to the PC's Superiors forms... The joke's punchline is on him. - -Charlemagne ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 21:14:31 -0500 From: "Charles Phipps" Subject: IN> The Gentleman Sorceror A new Sorceror NPC for you all, I hope you find him enjoyable. Johnathan Perry "The Gentleman Sorceror" Cor-1 Strength-2 Agility-2 Eth-3 Intelligence- 8 Precision- 4 Cel-3 Will- 8 Perception- 4 Artifacts: The Staff of Elegon 3/ Reliquary which produces three points of essence per day and can cast the Song of Ethereal Harmony for use with this. It appears as a twisted gnarled stick covered in Gaelic sigils and with a horned demon's head. Skills: Banishment 2/, Command 5/, Climbing 1/, Computer Operation 2/, Focus 2/, Lanquages (Gaelic 2/, German 1/, Arabic 2/, Hebrew 3/) Savoir Faire 2/, Summoning 4/ Songs: Song of Entropy (Corporeal 3/), Song of Dreams (Corporeal 2/), Song of Light (Ethereal 3/), Song of Prodjection (Corporeal 2/) Attunements: Sorcery Johnathan Perry looks good for a man over a hundred, extremely good. Johnathan is a Britishman by Birth and something of a legend among Sorcerors as he is reffered to as the "Gentleman" sorceror in such circles. Johnathan merely refers to his handsome twenty something young form as "the form God gave me". Though admittadly he deeply recognizes the irony in the statement. Born in the latest part of the 19th century Johnathan was the son of a dealer in rare books and while scholarly by trade was more interested in chasing girls than dealing with the stuffier workings of his father. When the Great War arrived Johnathan went off to fight for his country and was shocked with the insanity of the images, the dying, and the pointlessness of everything he witnessed. Returning home for a time on leave he only knew one thing in that he did NOT want to return and would give anything, including his soul to avoid what he saw. Johnathan wasn't a superstitious man by trade but growing up in a house where your father was a Rosicrucian and desperation eating in your heart you keep a generally opened mind and breaking into his father's collection Johnathan spent the last ounce of his leave huddled in the dark of his father's basement until he performed a ritual where he killed the cat that had been his pet since he was a much younger man and tossed it on a circle of his own blood....who answered was nothing less than the figure of Hapitas herself. Hapitas sensed the powerful destiny and fate that was inside Johnathan and decided to answer personally his request....for Johanathan it was love at first sight and she made sure that he was dismissed from service. A fire occured killing both his father and visiting best friend which authorities took as him. He found himself awakening on a ship with a ticket to the United States. Johnathan swore off magic that day but only a few months later returned to it's intoxicating allure... Johnathan has not been idle in the period since awakening to his magic and in his time he's been from the realms of Egypt unearthing ancient secrets of the Pharoahs to stage magics of the Houdini era (he's said to have initiated him into true power) the blackest castles of the Nazi regime...where he destroyed sorcerors not made them. Johnathan with a strong core of self does not consider himself an evil man but by devoting himself to discovering information about the War and the structure of the Symphony he's come to the conclusion he has no idea to join Heaven either for in his own morality they are every bit as arrogant and evil as the dominions of Hell. Under the guise of a exceptionally polite graduate student or new professor Johnathan is eagerly plying his trade in hopes of someday gaining enough power to truly make a difference better for humanity...and keep himself away from death and the fate he knows he has won for himself. Having destroyed a fairly large number demons (an awesome ammount for a "mere mortal") and a few angels he is likely not to be welcomed by either side but has no desire to be undead either. Oddly the only Celestial the "Gentleman Sorceror" has any sympathy for whatsoever is Hapitas herself whom he still is deeply and hopelessly in love with and would gladly go to whatever reward (or punishment) he is destined or fated for (or perhaps neither yet) for her. He hopes somehow someway she knows of his feelings for her and not view him as an ant to be squashed or with the bitter manipulative amusement so intricate to her kind. He thus rapidly seeks to involve himself in any affair of hers and actually has a imp "spy" in Kronos's archives regurarely report to him on her. Something many celestials would be very interested in. - -Charlemagne ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 20:56:11 -0800 From: "Bevan Thomas" Subject: Re: IN> The Gentleman Sorceror I like this guy a lot. Very well done, a very dramatic character. I notice that he has 7 forces. Is that intentional? It makes a very formidable character. I also note that he has an ethereal song. Does that mean he has the Ethereal-link attunement? - ----- Original Message ----- From: Charles Phipps To: Sent: Monday, December 25, 2000 6:14 PM Subject: IN> The Gentleman Sorceror > A new Sorceror NPC for you all, I hope you find him enjoyable. > > Johnathan Perry > "The Gentleman Sorceror" > > Cor-1 Strength-2 Agility-2 > Eth-3 Intelligence- 8 Precision- 4 > Cel-3 Will- 8 Perception- 4 > > Artifacts: The Staff of Elegon 3/ Reliquary which produces three points of > essence per day and can cast the Song of Ethereal Harmony for use with this. > It appears as a twisted gnarled stick covered in Gaelic sigils and with a > horned demon's head. > > Skills: Banishment 2/, Command 5/, Climbing 1/, Computer Operation 2/, Focus > 2/, Lanquages (Gaelic 2/, German 1/, Arabic 2/, Hebrew 3/) Savoir Faire 2/, > Summoning 4/ > > Songs: Song of Entropy (Corporeal 3/), Song of Dreams (Corporeal 2/), Song > of Light (Ethereal 3/), Song of Prodjection (Corporeal 2/) > > Attunements: Sorcery > > Johnathan Perry looks good for a man over a hundred, extremely good. > Johnathan is a Britishman by Birth and something of a legend among Sorcerors > as he is reffered to as the "Gentleman" sorceror in such circles. Johnathan > merely refers to his handsome twenty something young form as "the form God > gave me". Though admittadly he deeply recognizes the irony in the > statement. Born in the latest part of the 19th century Johnathan was the > son of a dealer in rare books and while scholarly by trade was more > interested in chasing girls than dealing with the stuffier workings of his > father. When the Great War arrived Johnathan went off to fight for his > country and was shocked with the insanity of the images, the dying, and the > pointlessness of everything he witnessed. Returning home for a time on > leave he only knew one thing in that he did NOT want to return and would > give anything, including his soul to avoid what he saw. > > Johnathan wasn't a superstitious man by trade but growing up in a house > where your father was a Rosicrucian and desperation eating in your heart you > keep a generally opened mind and breaking into his father's collection > Johnathan spent the last ounce of his leave huddled in the dark of his > father's basement until he performed a ritual where he killed the cat that > had been his pet since he was a much younger man and tossed it on a circle > of his own blood....who answered was nothing less than the figure of Hapitas > herself. Hapitas sensed the powerful destiny and fate that was inside > Johnathan and decided to answer personally his request....for Johanathan it > was love at first sight and she made sure that he was dismissed from > service. A fire occured killing both his father and visiting best friend > which authorities took as him. He found himself awakening on a ship with a > ticket to the United States. Johnathan swore off magic that day but only a > few months later returned to it's intoxicating allure... > > Johnathan has not been idle in the period since awakening to his magic and > in his time he's been from the realms of Egypt unearthing ancient secrets of > the Pharoahs to stage magics of the Houdini era (he's said to have initiated > him into true power) the blackest castles of the Nazi regime...where he > destroyed sorcerors not made them. Johnathan with a strong core of self > does not consider himself an evil man but by devoting himself to discovering > information about the War and the structure of the Symphony he's come to the > conclusion he has no idea to join Heaven either for in his own morality they > are every bit as arrogant and evil as the dominions of Hell. Under the > guise of a exceptionally polite graduate student or new professor Johnathan > is eagerly plying his trade in hopes of someday gaining enough power to > truly make a difference better for humanity...and keep himself away from > death and the fate he knows he has won for himself. Having destroyed a > fairly large number demons (an awesome ammount for a "mere mortal") and a > few angels he is likely not to be welcomed by either side but has no desire > to be undead either. > > Oddly the only Celestial the "Gentleman Sorceror" has any sympathy for > whatsoever is Hapitas herself whom he still is deeply and hopelessly in love > with and would gladly go to whatever reward (or punishment) he is destined > or fated for (or perhaps neither yet) for her. He hopes somehow someway she > knows of his feelings for her and not view him as an ant to be squashed or > with the bitter manipulative amusement so intricate to her kind. He thus > rapidly seeks to involve himself in any affair of hers and actually has a > imp "spy" in Kronos's archives regurarely report to him on her. > > Something many celestials would be very interested in. > > -Charlemagne > > > ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Dec 2000 23:00:45 -0600 (CST) From: Aaron Medwin Subject: Re: IN> Arisia On Mon, 25 Dec 2000, Jason Schneiderman wrote: > So - if I were to announce an IN List , who'd come besides myself and > Eric? Beth & Walter? Any other visitors? Well, I'd show up, for whatever that's worth. - -- - -Aaron Medwin ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Dec 2000 00:32:11 -0500 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> Arisia On 12/26/00 12:00 AM, "Aaron Medwin" alleged: > On Mon, 25 Dec 2000, Jason Schneiderman wrote: > >> So - if I were to announce an IN List , who'd come besides myself and >> Eric? Beth & Walter? Any other visitors? > > Well, I'd show up, for whatever that's worth. I'd likely drag my two hotel-room-folks if possible, both of whom are on here. - -- Eric A. Burns - in-sabre@annotations.com - http://www.annotations.com Whistling in the Dark "The world's great men have not commonly been great scholars, nor its great scholars great men." - --Oliver Wendell Holmes, "The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Dec 2000 01:04:09 -0400 From: Douglas Muir Subject: Re: IN> Arisia >On 12/26/00 12:00 AM, "Aaron Medwin" alleged: > >> On Mon, 25 Dec 2000, Jason Schneiderman wrote: >> >>> So - if I were to announce an IN List , who'd come besides myself and >>> Eric? Beth & Walter? Any other visitors? Yo [raising hand]. BTW, I'm going to be offline for 12 days, starting the day after tomorrow. Doug M. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Dec 2000 06:20:49 From: "Daniel Gallagher" Subject: Re: IN> Dominic-sama kawaii desu ne! >>Have him do Baal next? O:> > > > >He'll be in Mexico till Tuesday but when he get's back I'll ask. > >Just think, being able to replace all the Superior pictures in your >book with these... I perticulary want to see Novalis and a cute little Haggenti. Daniel Archangel of Slackers "The world is... hey, pass the Doritos." _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Dec 2000 02:56:08 -0400 From: Douglas Muir Subject: IN> The Torches Once upon a time there were three Mercurians of Fire. Gabriel created them, all three at once, just before the Fall. They were, at first, identical in almost all respects. One was the "oldest" by a few instants, another the "youngest", but otherwise they were indistinguishable... so much so, that their fellow angels simply called them the Torches. Their purpose was to be divine messengers. Gabriel gave them Songs and attunements to help them bring inspiration, assistance, and the Word of God to mankind. For many thousands of years, they were the main conduit between Gabriel and humanity. When one of her divine prophecies concerned a particular mortal, one of the Torches would go forth. And when there weren't any divine prophecies, the Torches would carry the spark of divine inspiration to those humans -- prophets, priests, and Soldiers in particular -- who did God's work on Earth. Originally, all three of the Torches looked like this: Mercurian Friend of the Divine Spark 3 Corporeal Strength 6 Agility 6 4 Ethereal Intel 10 Precision 6 6 Celestial Perception 12 Will 12 Role (none) Vessel - 5 Charisma - +2 Skills: Singing-6 Weapon (sword) - 4 Dancing-4 Others (variable) Fiery Sword -- +4 Power, -2 Accuracy, Summonable, Reliquary/4 Songs: Attraction Ethereal - 4 Celestial - 3 Calling Corporeal - 4 Fire Corporeal - 3 Ethereal - 6 Celestial - 2 Friendship Corporeal - 3 Ethereal - 2 Celestial - 6* Harmony Ethereal - 2 Healing Corporeal - 5 Motion Celestial - 6* Nimbus Corporeal - 2 Ethereal - 2 Celestial - 6* Purity Corporeal - 3 Ethereal - 3 Celestial - 2 Solace Corporeal - 5 Ethereal - 4 Celestial - 2 Tongues Corporeal - 6 (*If using the virtuouso rules, the angel is a virtuoso with these songs) Attunements: Mercurian of Fire, The Last Spark, Whispers of Inspiration, Vassal of Fire, Friend of the Divine Spark As older angels, all of the Torches are familiar with Heavenly history and gossip going back for thousands of years. They were in the thick of the fight at the Fall, they were lead singers in a certain heavenly Choir that appeared to some shephards two thousand years ago, and they held the bridle of the heavenly horse that Mohammed mounted in Jerusalem. They've spent more time on Earth than in heaven, though. And between wrestling with patriarchs and talking to prophets, they've had time to become intimately familiar with humanity and its ways. All the Torches speak dozens of ancient languages, and can (if pressed) discourse at length upon birth control practices in Ur of the Chaldees, or drinking games among the tenth-century Norse. The Torches once had little will of their own; they were so close to Gabriel, and to each other, as to almost lack individuality altogether. In the beginning, and for a long time after, it was almost impossible to tell them apart. They lacked names (or didn't use them), and their Hearts sat touching each other, enveloped by a single flame. Approaching the Divine more closely than any other members of their Choir, they barely seemed more than vessels for Gabriel's inspiring spark. And they were happy this way. But the centuries passed, and Gabriel's madness deepened, and even the Torches came to know time and change. Today there are still three, but they have grown very far apart. The youngest Torch left Gabriel's service a few centuries ago. The gentlest of the three, she could no longer bear her mistress' torment, or her own slowly growing perception of human cruelty. She took the name of Lumiere, and now she works for Novalis. Lumiere is a gentle creature for a Gabrielite, but still wilder, fiercer and much more intense than most servitors of Flowers. She follows Novalis' dissonance restrictions to the letter... but only to the letter; she still carries her Fiery Sword, and once she's convinced that violence is necessary, she won't hesitate to use it. This is rather un-Flowerlike, and has some of her fellow Servitors a bit leery of her. Novalis uses Lumiere for much the same function that Gabriel did, except that her work now consists of inspiring artists, healers and workers for peace. She is one of Novalis' foremost recruiters and organizers of Soldiers for Flowers; when she's not doing this work, she can be found among the poor and the sick and those who serve them, using her attunements and Songs to uplift and inspire. She's particularly fond of honest cops, social workers, ER doctors, teachers in poor school districts, human rights workers, and the like. Like most Mercurians, Lumiere loves mankind deeply and unselfishly. In her case, though, the love has been focussed into _inspiring_ humans -- to unselfishly help each other, to fearlessly seek peace, and the like. But here, again, she's a little unusual for a Flower; while her fellow Servitors are likely to offer comfort, encouragement and support, Lumiere is a bit more intense. She won't hesitate to nudge humans fairly hard, or manipulate them, in order to bring them to the unselfish service of the true and the good. Gabriel stripped Lumiere's distinctions and choir attunement, but left her The Last Spark and Whispers of Inspiration -- two very handy attunements for a Servitor of Flowers. She now has the Mercurian of Flowers Attunement and is a Vassal of Flowers. Her Songs are unchanged, except that she has added a couple of levels of Ethereal and Celestial Healing, and Celstial Shields at level 2. Lumiere would be a somewhat unusual NPC Servitor of Flowers for PCs to encounter, especially if they're used to thinking of Novalis' people as "touchy feely hippy do-gooders". She could also be a useful ally or mentor for a group of angel PCs. The second Torch took a different path. As she felt herself gradually diverging from Gabriel's mind and will, Pyrophora ("the Fire Carrier") compensated by cleaving ever more closely to Gabriel's instructions -- such as they were. As there has been less and less call for her to deliver divine inspiration, Pyrophora has concentrated more and more on punishing cruelty and smiting evil instead. Pyrophora has diligently trained herself to be a more effective Servitor of Gabriel-as-she-is-today. She has added one Corporeal Force (Strength 7 and Agility 9 now), and has picked up the Dodge and Fighting skills at level 2. She's also raised her Sword skill to level 6 and picked up "Pistol" at level 2. Finally, she's learned the Songs of Celestial Charm and Possession at level 3. In combat, she's very fond of popping in with Celestial Motion, hitting opponents with Celestial Charm, and body-hopping. Gabriel's Ofanim find her _lots_ of fun to work with... Pyrophora's personality has drifted in almost the opposite direction from her sister's. She still loves mankind, but it has become a rather abstract sort of love. She still brings inspiration sometimes, but it has become secondary to the task of vengeance and punishment. When she uses her songs of solace and healing now, it's more likely to be to help the victims of cruelty (or to clean up after a messy bit of smiting), rather than simply to uplift mankind. Oddly, Gabriel seems to have taken little notice of this dedication to duty. She rarely acknowledges the Torches anymore, and sometimes seems to confuse them with each other ("Don't you work for Novalis now?"). Soldekai, however, considers Pyrophora an excellent Servitor, if a bit humorless and hyper-focussed. He regularly puts her in charge of special assignments, and she usually has a number of lesser angels and Soldiers working under her. Pyrophora has all of the listed attunements, plus the Malakite of Fire and Mercurian of the Sword. Laurence granted her the latter, along with his "slay an evil creature" rite, partly in gratitude for services rendered destroying a particularly nasty ring of Hellsworn and their patron demon, but also in the hope that she'll one day bring her skills into the service of the Sword. Pyrophora has shown no signs of doing so, but she does get along very well with Servitors of the Sword. It's not clear whether Pyrophora yearns for the days when she brought the divine flame to dim humanity, or whether she has managed to crush all such nostalgia. When she still gets the occasional "inspirational" assignment, she carries it out meticulously -- but then, she carries out all her duties meticulously. No other angel is close enough to her to know whether these cause her fulfillment, resentment, or pain. Pyrophora is a powerful Gabrielite. Her Songs and attunements make her a useful NPC patron or ally, or a formidable and unusual enemy for a group of demons. (N.B., with Celestial Attraction, virtuouso Celestial Motion, heavy Cel Forces and lots of weapon skills, Pyrophora is one of the few non-Superior angels who might be able to take down Rossie, the malicious and cunning Impudite of Answered Prayers. GMs who find both these NPCs interesting might have fun pitting them against each other -- with the PCs in the middle, of course. The oldest Torch was unable to reconcile herself to the changes in Gabriel. Unwilling to embrace vengeance and punishment, nor either to leave Gabriel's service, she slowly accumulated Dissonance and Discord... until, at last, her Heart cracked and she became an Outcast. Ash today has the Discords (take a deep breath now) Bound - 4, Oblivious - 3, Crippled - 3, Paranoid - 3, and Need (be near fire) - 2. Ash appears as a crippled homeless man. One leg is withered and almost useless; s/he walks with a crutch, and can't move faster than a slow stumble without it. Her male Vessel still has +2 Charisma, but only an observer who pauses to look past the grime and ragged clothes and talk to her will realize this, as it's a matter of voice and gaze rather than "good looks". Her Oblivious Discord arises out of her painful attempt to refocus on divine Fire by finding God in the corporeal realm. It manifests itself as a generally distant air, a tendency to mumble to herself, and an occasional shocking disregard for human reactions -- crashing a wedding party and limping up to the altar to yell at the bride, say. Ash must make a Will roll minus the level of this Discord to concentrate on a conversation for (minutes x CD); if she fails, she'll simply ignore the person talking to her. Ash's Paranoid Discord expresses itself as her constant search for "inspiration" -- see below. Her Need requires her to be within (Cel forces x yards) of a good-sized fire for at least 4 hours per day. She usually satisfies this by hanging around encampments of the homeless, where someone always has a fire going in a trash can or some such. Ash has lost her Distinctions and her Mercurian of Fire attunement. Oddly enough, she still has The Last Spark and Whispers of Inspiration, just as both her sisters do. It may be that these attunements were so integral to the nature and original purpose of the Torches that Gabriel simply would not -- or could not -- strip them. Over time, Ash has built up a level 3 Role as a homeless person (Status 0). She travels from city to city, staying for days or weeks, moving on when "inspiration" strikes. She tends to stick to cities in cold climates, since it's easier to find fires there. "Inspiration", for Ash, is a strange, half-random process. Cast out of Heaven, she has become obsessed with finding the divine spark in the world. Ash is constantly looking for signs of God's will... in anything from newspaper headlines, to lottery numbers, to flights of birds or the fall of snow. She's perfectly capable of suddenly taking a trip across a continent - -- or launching a murderous attack on a drug dealer, or hiding in a cellar for six months -- because of something she thought she heard in the mumblings of an alchoholic lying drunk in an alley. Since this arises out of her Paranoid Discord, she gets a Will roll, minus the Discord level, to recognize that she's _not_ seeing a message from God. Her Will is high enough that she'll usually make it, but when she fails, she's bound to act as He has inspired her. Depending on the darkness and contrast of your particular campaign, this aspect of Ash may be frightening or horrible or funny or merely pathetic. She might actually, occasionally, _be_ channeling divine inspiration... or she may just be an altogether deluded Outcast angel, clutching at omens in a desperate attempt to find meaning. Though Outcast, Ash still seeks to fulfill her original function, to inspire and uplift humanity. Without guidance, however, she has become erratic and strange. She helps and heals, but without paying much attention to the consequences of her actions. She seeks to inspire, but has become clumsy in her methods -- several people in her city have nearly gone mad from hearing _real_ voices in their heads, when Ash's Oblivious Discord combined dangerously with her Whispers of Inspiration attunement to keep her yakking away. She has done much good in helping the poor and homeless, and she won't hesitate to smash cruelty when it walks across her path... but her constant search for "inspiration" means that much of the time she's following an autopilot set to random number generation. Ash still sincerely wishes to serve God, and is not in immediate danger of Falling. However, she tends to cause a lot of disturbance -- as divine messengers, none of the Torches ever had to learn much subtlety that way -- and so to attract Celestial attention. She'll attack or flee demons (more likely the latter -- she lost her Fiery Sword a long time ago, and most of her Songs and skills aren't too useful in combat). She might be vulnerable to a cautious approach, though. Getting her to Fall would be a major coup for a demonic PC, as the Torches are well known throughout both Heaven and Hell. It might be possible to bring Ash back into Heaven under a different Superior, and this would be nearly as great a coup for an angel. However, it's not at all clear how this might be accomplished. Ash can serve as an interesting and useful NPC in a variety of ways. Her odd combination of Discords can make her plasibly do almost anything; she could help PCs, hinder them, or both. Thoughts? Doug M. ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #1990 ******************************** The material here is (C) 2000 Steve Jackson Games, Incorporated. All rights reserved.