by Earl Wajenberg
Art by Dan Smith
Many role-playing campaigns center on important artifacts. If you are running In Nomine, Ars Magica, or any other game with Jewish or Christian religious elements, items from the Bible are particularly appropriate. The Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant come first to mind, of course, but there are many, many more. This article lists some of them. They may feature as religious relics, vessels of spiritual power (good or evil), or archeological treasures.
The Tree of Knowledge (Genesis 3)
This is the tree that Adam and Eve plucked the "apple" from (though nowhere does it say what kind of fruit it was). By this act of disobedience, they acquired the "knowledge of good and evil" (which probably means that they came to experience evil as well as good, instead of understanding it in an abstract, theoretical way). They also became mortal. Fruit, wood, leaves, flowers, or seeds from this tree, or from any of its descendants, could be tempting but perilous artifacts. What kind of knowledge would a second taste of fruit give to a child of Adam? What price would it have? Might a taste "humanize" a non-human creature, putting it in the same boat with the children of Adam? What about a smell of the flowers, or a tea made from the leaves, or an object carved from the wood?
The Tree of Life (Genesis 3)
There was another tree in the Garden of Eden. A taste of its fruit gave everlasting life. Adam and Eve were driven from the garden to keep . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: August 4, 2000
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