From owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Thu Apr 17 15:02:34 1997 Return-Path: Received: from lists.io.com (root@lists.io.com [199.170.88.15]) by deliverator.io.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA10459; Thu, 17 Apr 1997 14:23:40 -0500 (CDT) Received: (from majordom@localhost) by lists.io.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) id MAA31010 for in_nomine-digest-outgoing; Thu, 17 Apr 1997 12:54:41 -0500 Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 12:54:41 -0500 Message-Id: <199704171754.MAA31010@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 #122 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 Thursday, April 17 1997 Volume 01 : Number 122 In this digest: Re: IN> Adventure: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing Re: IN> Inspired by The Saint Re: IN> Know the Enemy #4 IN> Comics reference Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) Re: IN> Comics reference RE: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) Re: IN> Know the Enemy #4 Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) IN> All of Creation finale Re: IN> All of Creation finale Re: IN> All of Creation finale Re: IN> Xexistanai (new Demon Prince -- Long!) IN> Mephistopheles, Prince of the Deal Re: IN> Adventure: Fire in the Yucatan Re: IN> Adventure: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing Re: IN> Adventure: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing IN> Meta-Question IN> Re: in_nomine-digest V1 #121 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 07:42:03 +1100 From: "Patrick O'Duffy" Subject: Re: IN> Adventure: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing Paul F. Strack wrote: > > On Mon, 14 Apr 1997, Hollis McCray wrote: > > You know, I don't really think it's important to find out why the War > > remains a secret. but here's a story idea based on keeping the war a secret. > > The "Other Side" is planning on presenting quantitative proof to the mortal > > realm. The PCs are dispatched to stop it. > > How about this: > > A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing > [snip of seed concerning televangelism] Very neat idea, Paul, but... (You knew there'd be a 'but', didn't you? All I ever do on this list is tell people why the stuff they spend hours on sucks. What an arsehole, you're thinking - or 'asshole' if you're American. Well, I'm sorry, honest. I'll try to say more nice things in the future) ...a lot of televangelists _already_ say they've had visitations from angels! If another one threatens to talk about Celestials, it's not a really big problem. Heck (notice I didn't say h-e-double-hockey-sticks), even if they've had a genuine visitation, who'd believe them outside their regular flock! A better arrangement might be if Nybbas is working with Kronos to disrupt Rev Bishop's destiny, and so Yves sends servitors in to stop the Rev. being humiliated and falling into his fate. Just an idea (I usually end up having ideas that revolve around Yves/Kronos, don't know why). Minor objection to a very cool idea. - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia I have found some kind of temporary sanity In this shit, blood and come on my hands I've come round full circle. TOOL, "Prison Sex" ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 07:46:02 +1100 From: "Patrick O'Duffy" Subject: Re: IN> Inspired by The Saint Elizabeth McCoy wrote: > > At 10:51 AM -0400 4/15/97, Tim Seiger wrote: > >This past weekend I saw the movie _The Saint_, I recommend it if you > >haven't seen it allready. > [...] > >In the movie, Val Kilmer (sorry if I misspelled it) plays a character > >who goes by many names, all of them names of saints. > > ( Instead of all the various and amusing "S.T." > alisas that he goes by in the books and TV series. Alas, alas, > Sebastion Tombs is no more! ) > > But I still want to see it. I think. I'm _reallll_ dubious on The Saint. The trailers look bloody awful, and my memory of the books (never saw the TV show) is cringing... - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia I have found some kind of temporary sanity In this shit, blood and come on my hands I've come round full circle. TOOL, "Prison Sex" ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 16 Apr 1997 18:01:19 -0400 From: Elizabeth McCoy Subject: Re: IN> Know the Enemy #4 At 12:23 PM -0700 4/16/97, Hollis McCray wrote: >At 09:37 AM 4/16/97 -0500, you wrote: >>> >thank the Archangel of Sanity-Preservation! another Know the Enemy list. >>> >did i just come late to the dance, or are you planning to do a KtE >>> >series from the heavenly viewpoints? >>> I wish she would! I'm playing an angel's campiagn(being me, I serously mess >>> with the concepts of good and evil) and I could use the help. >> >>Of course, I'm sure that Beth wouldn't object if someone else wanted to >>tackle the angelic POV while she continues with the demonic... >If I had the time. As it its, I barely have time to run my campaign. So tell me which Superiors you need KtEs for... - --emccoy@nh.ultranet.com // arcangel@io.com // emccoy@jade.mv.net GURPS characters, Roleplayers; Art: http://www.io.com/~arcangel/ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 08:11:04 +1100 From: "Patrick O'Duffy" Subject: IN> Comics reference Hey kids. If you're interested in possible IN comics, check out the new issue of JLA from DC (#6). This issue has the angel Zauriel escaping from Heaven, pursued by the Bull Host of the Archangel Asmodel. Oh, and the demon Neron messing about in the background. I'm recommending this mainly for good visual of angels, rather than specific IN content. Zauriel is very much a classic angel, in the Mercurian mode, while the Bull Hosts looks very tough indeed. Lots of wings, flaming swords, and Songs (although a bit too 'sonic scream' in style). If you wanted to look at it in IN terms, Zauriel would probably be an Ofanim, possibly of Eli or Janus, being chased by some seriously pipe-swinging Malakim of Dominic, framed for crimes he didn't commit. Anyway, it's pretty, fun, and it has the JLA in it. You should be able to find a copy at any decent comic store, but JLA is a big seller, so get in early before it sells out. - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia I have found some kind of temporary sanity In this shit, blood and come on my hands I've come round full circle. TOOL, "Prison Sex" ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 16 Apr 1997 18:17:37 -0400 From: Elizabeth McCoy Subject: Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) At 4:43 PM -0400 4/16/97, John Karakash - Lucent ASCC wrote: >On Apr 16, 3:07pm, Elizabeth McCoy wrote: >> Subject: Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) >> At 8:35 AM -0400 4/16/97, John Karakash - Lucent ASCC wrote: >> [...] >> > Each new Vessel cost character points. Period. If >> >you want to 'trade in' a vessel for another, talk to your >> >Superior (i.e. the GM). >> >> So Lilim can't swap vessels even-steven? Ah, well. > > As a plot element, I can easily imagine a GM letting >this happen, but not as a 'on the fly' sorta thing. No, "Okay, you get the Persian Cat vessel, and I'll take that cute little parakeet you've gotten bored with," then. Alas. > So >a Superior might say, "I need you to be a fifty-year old >janitor for the next year. Here's your new vessel." But >just deciding that the year's fashions demand a new vessel >is probably out of the question. ;) Unless your Superior is Andrealphus or maybe Nybbas... Who might just provide new fashion vessels for the amusement value of it. - --emccoy@nh.ultranet.com // arcangel@io.com // emccoy@jade.mv.net GURPS characters, Roleplayers; Art: http://www.io.com/~arcangel/ ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 16 Apr 1997 19:48:28 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) > > Unless your Superior is Andrealphus or maybe Nybbas... Who > might just provide new fashion vessels for the amusement value > of it. Or possibly Kobal. Who knows what sort of prank he might be planning? }=> - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |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, 16 Apr 1997 20:32:07 -0400 (EDT) From: Frederic Bush Subject: Re: IN> Comics reference > If you wanted to look at it in IN terms, Zauriel would probably be an >Ofanim, possibly of Eli or Janus, being chased by some seriously >pipe-swinging Malakim of Dominic, framed for crimes he didn't commit. Oh, this is too tempting. "In 1972, a crack celestial squad was framed for a crime they did not commit... if you're in trouble, if you need help, maybe you can find... the A-Team!" Hannibal, Seraph of Michael Murdock, Ofanim of Eli B.A., Cherub of David Faceman, Mercurian of Novalis Hunted by Dominic's archangels, they travel the Earth, doing as much good as they can until the symphony is disturbed and they must flee squads of hevenyl policeman... We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 11:54:35 GMT+10 From: "Leathal Weapon" <938269@wrpc.riv.csu.edu.au> Subject: RE: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) In reply to: - -the word I was asking about was "abandoning" the > > vessel. So if I buy a five force human and two two force critters, I > > have _no_ forces for possession at _all_, even if I'm in Celestial > > form. Ever. Please tell me this is right--the character becomes even > > more fearsome if he can do Kyriotate schtick, too. . . . > > Okay, here's my take on the situation. Only Kyriotates can have more than one vessel 'energized' at a time. Are we all agreed on that? Since any celestial (except Kyriotates) can have several 'potential' vessels, I don't see the extras as taking up forces. So when the Kyriotate of Michael creates 3 vessels as in the example above, you should take the highest Forces one as the only one counting towards abandonment. Therefore, in the eg above, the Kyriotate would have 5 Forces tied up in his own vessel (the human) but not in the critters, as long as they aren't materialized. If they are materialized, then of course they count towards the total. Think of it this way. The average celestial doesn't actually make several vessels when they purchase them at Character Creation. Rather, they buy ONE which has MULTIPLE forms programmed into it, so it has the potential to become several shapes, but the Celestial can only control one at a time. If some are weaker (read; less forces) than others, that is a design choice, not a potentials problem. Now take the Kyriotate of Michael. He purchases several vessels. They count as for other Celestials as only one vessel in terms of potentiality (the greatest Forces only counted), but the Kyritotate with its alien mind can see the 'trick' of forcing that vessel to 'split up' and allow more than one to be formed at the same time. This of course takes a lot of concentration, so these materialised vessels DO count towards the total Forces the Celestial can control. Does that explanation make sense to anyone but me, and does anyone else agree with it? Leath. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 16 Apr 1997 20:43:13 -0500 From: tom timberlake Subject: Re: IN> Know the Enemy #4 weeellllll, since you asked ...Michael, David, Jordi, and Gabriel, in that order . clear skies to soar to Heaven in, James, Malakim of Stone . ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 16 Apr 1997 21:33:30 -0500 From: tom timberlake Subject: Re: IN> Vessel costs (was: Dreamscapes) your explanation of energized vessels sounds good to me,Leath, but maybe you should ask a Kyriotate and not a Malakim. James of Stone ------------------------------ Date: 17 Apr 97 01:21:52 EDT From: Moriah - Steve Jackson Games <73407.515@compuserve.com> Subject: IN> All of Creation finale To piggyback on Beth's Eli adventure.... The angels charged with finding Eli come upon, at various times, various types of NPCs (angels, soldiers, mundanes, etc...) who provide some help in tracking down Eli. These NPCs often get the PCs 'close' to tracking down Eli, but it never pans out. Rather, they wind up involved in some sort of mini-adventure which they find annoying since it derails them from their objective, but feel obligated to help out in the current situation. (These mini-adventures could be good introductory adventures for PCs.) Often, the PCs even find themselves stumbling upon some other candidate's test for the Word of Creation, but again, what that candidate is working on is so important to so many humans, that the PCs are again self-obligated to help out -- even if it must be done covertly. Finally, they fail. They are present in the Spires of the Seraphim Council while the candidates present their cases. After all the cases are presented, and a vote is called for, but before a vote is cast, one of the angelic NPCs the PCs met shows up and calls for a halt. It is Eli. After a juicy gloat by Dominic about how Eli is too late, Eli presents his case. It turns out *all* the NPCs the PCs met were various vessels of Eli. The 'leads' Eli gave them were purposely designed to get the PCs to help further the Word of Creation, even by helping the poser candidates. Eli is, of course, vindicated. Dominic is still p.o.'d about Eli's lack of orthodox means of proving himself (IOW, snubbing the council and using trickery). And the PCs 'experience points' will come as in character rewards from Eli. Peace, Moriah ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 16:23:07 +1100 From: "Patrick O'Duffy" Subject: Re: IN> All of Creation finale Moriah - Steve Jackson Games wrote: > > To piggyback on Beth's Eli adventure.... > > The angels charged with finding Eli come upon, at various times, various > types of NPCs (angels, soldiers, mundanes, etc...) who provide some help in > tracking down Eli. These NPCs often get the PCs 'close' to tracking down > Eli, but it never pans out. Rather, they wind up involved in some sort of > mini-adventure which they find annoying since it derails them from their > objective, but feel obligated to help out in the current situation. (These > mini-adventures could be good introductory adventures for PCs.) > > Often, the PCs even find themselves stumbling upon some other candidate's > test for the Word of Creation, but again, what that candidate is working on > is so important to so many humans, that the PCs are again > self-obligated to help out -- even if it must be done covertly. > > Finally, they fail. They are present in the Spires of the Seraphim > Council while the candidates present their cases. After all the cases are > presented, and a vote is called for, but before a vote is cast, one of the > angelic NPCs the PCs met shows up and calls for a halt. It is Eli. After a > juicy gloat by Dominic about how Eli is too late, Eli presents his case. > > It turns out *all* the NPCs the PCs met were various vessels of Eli. The > 'leads' Eli gave them were purposely designed to get the PCs to help further > the Word of Creation, even by helping the poser candidates. > > Eli is, of course, vindicated. Dominic is still p.o.'d about Eli's lack > of orthodox means of proving himself (IOW, snubbing the council and using > trickery). And the PCs 'experience points' will come as in character rewards > from Eli. > > Peace, > > Moriah Hmmm.... It all seems a bit contrived, Moriah. I mean, it reads well, but players might get annoyed with being led through a series of seemingly- pointless adventures, and then finding out at the end that they were being had all along. (I know I said I'd start saying nicer things soon. Sorry. I'm actually a very pleasant chap in real life, believe it or not.) - -- Patrick O'Duffy, Brisbane, Australia I have found some kind of temporary sanity In this shit, blood and come on my hands I've come round full circle. TOOL, "Prison Sex" ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 08:30:58 -0400 From: "John Karakash - Lucent ASCC" Subject: Re: IN> All of Creation finale [Suggestion snipped] > Eli is, of course, vindicated. Dominic is still p.o.'d about Eli's lack > of orthodox means of proving himself (IOW, snubbing the council and using > trickery). And the PCs 'experience points' will come as in character rewards > from Eli. > > Peace, > > Moriah Well, _someone_ has to gild the lily! =) Just kidding! I like your additions a lot (and I liked the original idea a whole bunch as well!) - -- ___________________________________________________ / \ |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: Thu, 17 Apr 97 10:05:27 -0500 (CDT) From: kestre1@airmail.net (Andrew Getting) Subject: Re: IN> Xexistanai (new Demon Prince -- Long!) At 02:05 PM 4/16/97 -0400, in_nomine-l@lists.io.com wrote: >Xexistanai (Prince of Pain) Hey, now ;> You never said which Band he belongs to. >BAND ATTUNEMENTS >Balseraph > Can sense what lies will cause the person >the most pain. On a successful Resonance roll, >the Balseraph can inflict Mind hits (with a power >of +1) to their victim. That's vicious. I like it ;> >Djinn > Can tell what any attuned person treasures >most and the best way to damage it. For one Essence, >the Djinn can transfer the damage from _one_ attack >to an attuned person. Does this generate Dissonance (the Djinn is harming his Attuned object)? >Calabim > Xexistanai has the most controlled Calabim. Actually, Kronos does (they have no Discord). >When they succesfully use their Resonance on a living, >feeling creature, the damage inflicted occurs over the >course of a number of minutes equal to the damage >done (one point of damage per minute). >During this time, the affected creature is at a penalty >equal to the Calabim's Celestial forces for _any_ >action. Again, vicious, but familiar... >Habbalah > With a Perception roll, the Habbalah knows >exactly what to do to cause a person emotional >pain. With a successful Resonance roll they can >use a new Emotional Effect: Pain. Any specific >thing the Habbalah specifies causes the victim >anguish in its presence. The victim must make >a Will roll _each round_ to voluntarily stay in >the presence of the indicated object. This lasts >a number of days equal to the check digit of >the Resonance roll. The Habbalites can already do this with a successful Resonance roll applied towards Disgust, and it has a greater affect (no will roll; the guy bolts). >Lilim > Lilim of Xexistanai can grant a new type >of favor: pleasure. The Lilim damages one-sixth >of the person's Body hits for each Level of the favor >but the victim feels it as pleasure. Each time the >addict meets the Lilim again, he must make a Will >roll (minus the Level of the last 'favor') or beg >for another Favor from her. A successful roll >means that addict never has to involuntarily ask >another Favor again, but if he does it voluntarily >the addiction is reinstated. And each Favor must >be at least one level higher than the last. The >seventh time automatically kills the victim. Can the Lilim extract Geasa from her victims like this? >Shedim > Can _automatically_ possess any human >that takes pleasure from pain and use such a >Vessel for [Celestial Forces] days without >having to increase the 'sin level' each day. The term's "masochist", and do they still have to corrupt their host? >Impudite > With a successful Perception roll, these >Impudites can start rumors that will eventually >harm or destroy their chosen victim. For example, >they could start a rumor that a certain person was >the murderer that the police were looking for and >soon many people would believe it, possibly even >the police themselves! Any individual person can >make a Perception roll to shake off the effects of the >rumor if confronted by obvious counter-evidence. This seems more in tune with Balseraphs (a lie is a lie, after all). Perhaps instead the Impudite has a bonus to his Resonance rolls when his mark is in extreme pain. >SERVITOR ATTUNEMENTS >Twisted Pleasure: Any single attack that does 5 or more >points of damage to the Servitor increases their Strength >by one for an hour (this can take it higher than 12). Youch. Dangerous games. >Shared Pain: For any attack they do with their bodies (without >a weapon) they gain hits equal to one-quarter the damage of the >attack, rounded down. Unarmed attack, and change "they" to Servitors for clarity. >DISTINCTIONS >Knight of Pain > Feels all pain as pleasure, never suffers shock effects Do you mean stuns? >Captain of Agony > Can sense all pain within [Perception*10] yards >and its cause on a Perception roll if within [Perception] yards. Physical and/or emotional pain? >Baron of Suffering > For one Essence they can make any successful physical >attack do Mind Hits equal to the Check Digit of the attack. Does it still do physical damage? >RELATIONS >Allied: Beleth >Hostile: Andrealphus, Saminga >Associated: Everyone else Baal would probably be an Ally, actually (all the better to give his soldiers these nice attunements). Can't see Nybbas giving a crap. >BASIC RITES >Torture someone physically or mentally for 24 hours >Cause someone to commit suicide due to suffering (2) Preventing them should help, too ;> >CHANCE OF INVOCATION: 2 > >INVOCATION MODIFIERS >A child with a skinned knee +1 >An IRS audit in progress +2 >A messy divorce +3 >A heroin addict in cold-turkey withdrawl +4 >A person who is dying of cancer +5 >A person with over 50% of their skin flayed/burned off +6 Hyeh. Good. Kestrel ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 97 10:05:11 -0500 (CDT) From: kestre1@airmail.net (Andrew Getting) Subject: IN> Mephistopheles, Prince of the Deal MEPHISTOPHELES Prince of the Deal "Greed is good." -Michael Douglas, "Wall Street" The world's not exactly in the best of shape, but that's no reason for you to suffer... Self-serving bastards to the last, the Servitors of Mephistopheles know how to get ahead. A Balseraph with slick hair and an irresistable grin, even his fellows in the Band know better than to consider anything Mephistopheles says to be the full truth. Mephistopheles is something like Hell's head accountant; it falls to him and his to count and distribute the Hellbound souls. To this end, he also works closely with Baal to ensure that more and more souls fall to Infernal might. If that fills both their coffers more, all the better. In the last millenium, however, Mephistopheles has encountered setback after setback. A powerful earthly necromancer redeemed himself with Mephistopheles' accidental aid (Saminga will never forgive this slight), and the two Servitors of Dominic that guard Hell's gate have been known to supply their Superior with Mephistopheles' plans. The fact that Mephistopheles has occasionally been caught embezzelling souls has also compounded his fate; until he can prove himself loyal to Lucifer, he is no longer permitted to leave Hell. The Dealers have never been busier. DISSONANCE It is dissonant for Servitors of the Deal to come out behind in any arrangement, forced or otherwise. Getting caught and punished will cause dissonance. BAND ATTUNEMENTS Balseraphs Balseraphs of the Deal know fine print like nobody else, and have "borrowed" some ideas from the Lilim. With a successful Resonance check, they may inflict an additional Geas (of a level equal to the check digit) upon anyone who signs their Contracts. If the Resonance fails, however, the wording is wrong and the Balseraph owes the signers an additional Geas equal to the check digit. Malakim and Seraphim cannot be tricked in this manner; not only will they see the trickery in the contract, but if they did not know the nature of the Balseraph, they immediately figure it out. Consequently, the Balseraphs tend to be cautious with this Attunement. Djinn Often employed as advanced "familiars" on earthly missions, each Djinn is attuned to a Servant of a level equal to their Celestial Forces. Though this attunement does not count towards the total number a Djinn must possess, a Djinn must ALWAYS protect his Servant or else gain Discord instead of Dissonance for their harm. Calabim Alone among the Dealers, Calabim can break their word in a Contract freely on a successful Resonance check. If they choose to do so, the terms of the Contract are void (the contract burns up). This may not be done after a side fulfills their part of the bargain. Habbalah The Habbalah of the Deal are often looked towards as Hell's mediators; they will ensure that everyone is maligned equally. At character generation, they may purchase any Habbalite attunement of another Demon Prince (excepting Saminga) at +5 character points, or a general attunement at +5 character points. If, in the course of the Habbalite's travels, a Demon Prince bestows additional attunements, Mephistopheles will not feel slighted as long as no betrayal seems imminent. Lilim The Lilim of the Deal are extraordinarily tricky. When inflicting a Geas upon themselves as part of any deal (not just a Contract), the Geas level is one lower than normal. Geasa that would be level 1 are still level 1, however. Few Lilim are allowed into Mephistopheles' ranks; the Prince of the Deal's trade is in enslavement, and Lilith almost never creates her children for Mephistopheles. Shedim Shedim may freely possess anyone who has willingly signed a Contract with the Shedim. He need not fight the host for control, nor must he further corrupt the host. Impudites Impudites are often sent to Earth as advance agents in deals, and Mephistopheles makes sure they're nigh undetectable. Impudites pay half the cost for any Roles they possess. SERVITOR ATTUNEMENTS Contract While blood does add style, it's not necessary. The demon may draw up a contract either between another and himself or between any number of other parties (this is often used to create Soldiers of Hell). After all signatures are received, the demon spends as many Essence points as he wishes, at a minimum of 1. If any side of the bargain reneges upon the agreement, any parts of the contract pertaining to them are void (though, in cases with multiple parties, the other parties are still bound to each other) and the oathbreaker immediately gains Discords (GM's choice) with total levels equal to the number of Essence the demon spent after the contract was signed. All parties are immediately aware of who broke the rules, as well. The broken word, not the intent, of the Contract is what sets these events in motion. Contracts are sent to Kronos's Archive, where they are stored for safety. If a Contract is destroyed by means other than the Calabim Attunement above, all parties are still subject to its terms; the filing process is more for Kronos' verification than anything else. ALL SERVITORS OF MEPHISTOPHELES MUST PURCHASE THIS ATTUNEMENT AT CHARACTER GENERATION. DISTINCTIONS Knight of the Promise The demon may, after reading a contract, know any and all loopholes, hidden riders, or falsehoods presented therein. If used on a Contract before anyone signs it, this allows the player to revise his contract after the GM points out any ambiguities. GMs need not point all of these out, however, as slip-ups can and do occur (don't ask the boss about that Faust guy). Captain of Misdirection With this Distinction, every Essence imbued in a Contract is also added to the check digit of any rolls made involving another party in the Contract (so long as it is not violated). If the Contract is in the demon's possession, he will also know the whereabouts of everyone in the contract. Agent of the Hollow Word A demon of this distinction may act as an official envoy to another Prince, and is branded with a seal to prove it. If this seal is revealed to another celestial (the seal can appear anywhere on the body), that celestial must not interfere with the demon lest he anger Mephistopheles. It is not uncommon for demons who attack Agents to find themselves reduced to Remnants by their own Superiors. Angels (particularly Marc's) are noticeably less concerned. RELATIONS With the exception of his Allies, all Demon Princes view Mephistopheles one level lower than he views them. Mephistopheles is trying to claw his way back to power, but has angered many along his initial climb. Allied: Baal, Kronos, Nybbas, Valefor Associated: Asmodeus, Haagenti Hostile: Kobal Enemy: Saminga (yes, this does mean Saminga views Mephistopheles as worse than Andrealphus) BASIC RITES Trick an Angel into a Contract with you. + 2 Essence Trick an Angel of Marc into a Contract with you. Full Essence Claim a mortal soul at the designated time. + 2 Essence CHANCE OF INVOCATION: 2 Though he can no longer journey to the mortal plane or the Marches, Mephistopheles will summon the demon back to Hell on a successful invocation. This process takes 7 hours minus the check digit of the invocation, so it's less than useful in tight spots. INVOCATION MODIFIERS +1 The signing of a normal contract (as opposed to the attunement). +2 A mortal who has lost everything because they made a poor bargain (GM's interpretation). +3 A contract of indentured servitude. +4 A new Contract. +5 Evidence of Marc's interference in a current plot. +6 The destruction of one of Faust's descendants. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 11:29:07 -0400 (EDT) From: gibsonc@nku.edu Subject: Re: IN> Adventure: Fire in the Yucatan This can be a problem for every religion. or we can all get over it. my girlfriend who is Mormon finds this completely alien since she believes all humans were once and will be again(this is greatly simplified) angels. I being baptist have less trouble accepting the whole concept. Just like in AD&D though, its still just a game!! no one expects a priest of Nut to really worship Nut. jahon On Wed, 16 Apr 1997, Joshua Mosqueira wrote: > At 02:11 PM 4/15/97 -0400, you wrote: > >On Tue, 15 Apr 1997, Russ Collins wrote: > >> This is an interesting adventure, but a Mayan god is more likely to be at > >> home in the Yucatan than an Aztec one, IMHO. > > > >Yes, I agree. But I found it much easier to find out information about > >Aztec gods than Mayan ones. Plus Aztec dieties have a nastier reputation > >in modern circles. > > And here lies my one complaint with In Nomine; it seems to invite value > judgment towards those systems of belief that do not fit into the game's > monotheistic paradigm. While this whole business about 'pagan' gods being > aligned with the demonic never set well with me, I know it 'fits' the game, > but it opens a whole can of ideological worms. > The Fire in the Yucatan seed, though interesting, shows one of the > potential pitfalls of In Nomine. Being Mexican, I can understand why certain > aspects of Aztec religion may seem to "modern circles" as nasty, but to > categorically place 'pagan' gods in the roles of "bogey" men that perform > heathen sacrifices is a little too problematic for me. > I'd like to point out that I don't mean to criticize Paul for his > adventure, which I liked, his treatment of the Zappatista movement was well > handled, my only concern is with the ideological constructs possibly > operating within the game > > Just figured I'd add in my two pesos. > ______________________________________________ > Joshua Mosqueira, > effigy@total.net > > ______________________________________________ > > ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 18 Apr 1997 01:49:55 +1000 From: "kenkoala" Subject: Re: IN> Adventure: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing Hey Patrick I didn't think anyone was interested in IN in Brisbane! Where did you get your copy? kenkoala@dcc.net.au ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 11:43:21 -0400 (EDT) From: gibsonc@nku.edu Subject: Re: IN> Adventure: A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing thanx 4 the adventure, i like this one alot!!! jahon On Wed, 16 Apr 1997, Paul F. Strack wrote: > On Mon, 14 Apr 1997, Hollis McCray wrote: > > You know, I don't really think it's important to find out why the War > > remains a secret. but here's a story idea based on keeping the war a secret. > > The "Other Side" is planning on presenting quantitative proof to the mortal > > realm. The PCs are dispatched to stop it. > > How about this: > > A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing > > The player characters (preferably angels, but demons are a possibility) > are called in to deal with an urgent problem in Kentucky. It seems that > the ministry of a televangelist by the name Reverend Harold Bishop has > recently had a Celestial encounter. According to an (un)holy spy within > Bishop's church, the good reverend witnessed the miraculous appearance of > a Celestial being, and plans to share the good word with his flock. > > The PCs must prevent this revelation from happening, and learn of what is > going on. The spy was not a witness to the miracles, so few details are > known. The Celestial being appeared in a glowing field of light, and > supposedly healed a badly injured man. He then spoke comforting words to > Reverend Bishop, telling him that he had been chosen for a special > revelation. Reverend Bishop agreed to allow the apparent angel to speak > to his flock on live TV. The celestial being itself could be almost > anything: a rogue or Outcast angel, a demon, an Ethereal spirit with an ax > to grind, or maybe just mortal chicanery. > > > > What Happened > > The Celestial being in question is in fact a Balseraph Servitor of Nybaas > name Caliban. His demonic compatriots arranged an accident that injured > one of the technicians on the set of Reverend Bishop's show. Caliban then > appeared and - with a judicious use of the Celestial Song of Form (for > wings) and the Corporeal Song of Healing - demonstrated his divine nature. > Caliban wasn't lying when he told the reverend that he was an angel. He > just neglected to mention the "fallen" bit. > > Caliban has been working on the reverend with his Resonance for the last > few days. At this point Bishop is completely convinced of Caliban's holy > nature. Bishop is beginning to air commercial advertizing that he will > have an actual angel of the Lord speak in an upcoming show. A great deal > of PR is being devoted to getting out the word, and the mainstream media > is beginning to pay attention as well. Caliban is laying low until the > actual day of the show, but several other demonic servants are watching > the reverend's organization for the Celestial intervention that is likely > to come. They hope to delay and confuse the issue until the day of the > show arrives and Caliban can make his "revelation". > > > > Reverend Bishop's Ministry > > Reverend Bishop is actually a sincere man, devoted to spreading the word > of God. His ministry has gotten large enough that it is not entirely > under his control, however. Bishop's church has grown to the size of > 5000, and his weekly television show reaches nearly a quarter million > more. Bishop's ministry rakes in big money, from donations, advertising > and marketing spinoffs. This sort of money attracts avarice. > > Bishop's PR person is one Samantha Stone, a greedy and grasping woman more > concerned with wealth and reputation than Christian works. Oddly enough, > she is the person most likely to want to stop the TV appearance of the > angel; she is worried that it will somehow blow up in the ministry's face. > Furthermore, Stone is used to having the reverend wrapped around her own > finger, and doesn't like the competition. For now, she is going along > with the reverend's plan, but is seeking some sort of alternative. > > The rest of Bishop's ministry is an odd mix of devoted Christian's (many > of whom are extremely loyal to the charismatic Bishop) and cynical media > technicians. Demonic and angelic spies are seeded amongst this cast of > characters. A Servitor of Marc is watching the ministry to make sure a > signifigant percentage of its collected wealth goes to charity > foundations (this is the holy spy). There are the allies of Caliban as > well, looking to make trouble for anyone meddling in their plans. > > > > The Infernal Plan > > With demons, few things are ever as they seem. Caliban has no intention > of revealing the existence of angels. In fact, he plans to stage an > "angelic appearance" that is so hopelessly fake that even Bishop's most > adoring fans will see through it immediately. He will walk on stage with > a chicken feather and wire wings, spout a few prophecies that he clipped > from a tabloid, bungle a healing and generally make an ass of himself. > Caliban's control of Bishop is great enough that he expects to be able to > get through the whole performance before he is yanked from the airwaves. > > After Caliban's disastrous fraud, Bishop should be ruined. Betrayal by > their minister could extend in doubt in the Lord, and hundreds of > thousands of mortals can be led astray. Caliban hopes to utilize any > divine interferance to make the situation even worse, since the angels > should be unaware of his true plan. The angels may find themselves in > the uncomfortable position of accessories in Caliban's plot. > > Caliban won't appear until 15 minutes into the show, so direct attacks on > him will be nearly impossible without thousands of witnesses. Caliban > isn't above labeling his attackers as demons as well. Reverend Bishop is > also impossible to sway. He is caught too deeply in Caliban's lies. The > PCs will have to work carefully and indirectly if they want to save the > reverend's church. > > -- > > Paul Strack | Madness takes its toll. > pfstrack@math.unc.edu | Please have exact change. > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > Web Page - http://www.math.unc.edu/Grads/pfstrack/wod.html > > ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 12:24:26 -0400 (EDT) From: Gregory Littmann Subject: IN> Meta-Question This topic pertains more to the list than to the game, but I'd like to ask it anyway. What games did list-people mostly play before they found In Nomine (these may *still* be the games you mostly play). 1. GURPS 2. White Wolf Games 3. Other (Please Specify) ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 11:27:35 -0500 (CDT) From: rogue@ez-net.com (RogueLdr) Subject: IN> Re: in_nomine-digest V1 #121 >At 10:45 PM -0500 4/15/97, RogueLdr wrote: >>> >[...] > >>"God help us, that Shedim's got the d10! RUN!!!!!!" > >I'd thinkit would be worse with a d4, myself. Damn things are awfully sharp.... >Fleurity, Demon Prince of Drugs... Arguable. Maybe a Demon under >him? I'd say a servitor, yes. >>ALL OF YOU. DOMINICNET HAS SPOKEN. > >But, but... Yves *expects* me to finish this. What if some of me shows >up now and the rest follows along when I'm done here? YVES? ERROR. CURSES. FOILED AGAIN. DISREGARD PREVIOUS TRANSMISSION. - -DOMINICNET- keeping Heaven safe from Heresy. >>>The Dice Never Lie. >> >>Never been to Vegas, have we, Arch Beth? ;) > >Well, they're not Lying. They're just not telling you the Truth you >want, eh? Close enough for me... >>-Rogue, who wishes he could get some Divine Intervention in his next craps >>night > >Gambling. Tsk. Is that any behavior of an Angel not of the Wind? > Who said anything about not being of the Wind? Who said anything about Angel? - -Rogue, He Who Misdirects ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #122 ******************************* The material here is (C) 1996 Steve Jackson Games, Incorporated. All rights reserved.