From owner-in_nomine-digest@lists.io.com Sat May 12 09:43:20 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 JAA21551 for ; Sat, 12 May 2001 09:43:20 -0500 Received: (from majordom@localhost) by lists.io.com (8.9.3/8.9.1a) id JAA24572 for in_nomine-digest-outgoing; Sat, 12 May 2001 09:52:15 -0500 Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 09:52:15 -0500 Message-Id: <200105121452.JAA24572@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 #2220 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 Saturday, May 12 2001 Volume 01 : Number 2220 In this digest: Re: IN> Failed Races Re: IN> An odd thought... Re: IN> An odd thought... Re: IN> An odd thought... IN> May 6, 2001 (ML) IN> Re: In Nomine traveller IN> May 7, 2001 (ML) IN> The Angel of Relaxation IN> Weird , noncanonical and bright, Bright, BRIGHT Swordy Thought. Re: IN>Big Eyed Fluffy Kittens IN> Iron Rev:: The Wrap IN> Comes the Redeemer IN> Malakite of War, indeed. IN> Malakite of War, indeed. IN> Superior Roles: Khalid Re: IN> No funny title this time. It simply won't help. IN> Servants of the Fallen V ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 15:13:36 -0700 (PDT) From: Michael Walton Subject: Re: IN> Failed Races - --- Charles Phipps wrote: > Failed races would be races of sentients between, before, > and after the > dinosaurs but before the human race who somehow were > proven unworthy and > were either killed, ascended, or died out on their own. Shoot, the dinosaurs are a great place to start. If you want to go before them, check out the Permian and Cambrian extinctions. I can see a species of sentient ammonite. ===== Michael Walton, #9805-068 None of your plans for success will work unless you do. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices http://auctions.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 15:15:14 -0700 (PDT) From: Michael Walton Subject: Re: IN> An odd thought... - --- Whistling in the Dark wrote: > (Gosh, I wonder if Laurence has any influence in the > Sword Worlds? You *think?*) It's worse than that. Picture one of Larry's futuristic Word-bound -- the Angel of Lightsabers. You may scream at leisure. ===== Michael Walton, #9805-068 None of your plans for success will work unless you do. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices http://auctions.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 17:25:39 -0500 From: "Prodigal" Subject: Re: IN> An odd thought... From: "John Walter Biles" > > > IN Traveller. > > > But would it be possible for your angel or demon or soldier char to die > during character generation? That's the real question :) It's only Trauma... ;;;) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 18:31:08 -0400 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> An odd thought... At 5:25 PM -0500 5/11/01, Prodigal wrote: >From: "John Walter Biles" >> >> > IN Traveller. >> > >> But would it be possible for your angel or demon or soldier char to die >> during character generation? That's the real question :) > >It's only Trauma... ;;;) And your Role. Think about it. Twenty-four stinkin' years to build an iron-clad Role/6, and *boom,* you get spacked just before mustering out and embarking on the actual mission your Superior planned for you. - -- Eric Alfred Burns - Habbalite of Belaboring the Point ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 20:01:26 -0700 (PDT) From: Maurice Lane Subject: IN> May 6, 2001 (ML) No real connection, but it's got to be called _something_. Gotta hate those inconvenient Children of the Grigori, no? :) Moe Crown of St. Edbert Well, probably not, unless St. Edbert had a golden crown with a faceted diamond inset at the front (hint: extremely unlikely). The Crown is a mild talisman (Knowledge: Law), relic (Ethereal Song of Tongues) and dedicated Reliquary/1: it must be worn in plain sight to work. This is a problem. While attractive, by modern standards it's extremely gaudy: the hassles of owning it overwhelm whatever modest advantages are gained from using it. The vicissitudes of the War have long since relegated it to a museum, where it is pretty much lay hidden in plain sight. No celestial has ever needed its abilities badly enough to go steal it. However, a mortal thief decided to go steal it anyway (strictly for its monetary value): he discovered its telepathic abilities fairly quickly, and is now in the process of carving out a nice little criminal empire for himself. Pretty soon someone's going to have to go and take it away from him... Crown of St. Edbert Relic/3 (Ethereal Song of Tongues) 9pt Talisman/1 (+1 to Knowledge: Law) 2pt Reliquary/1 (only with Ethereal Song of Tongues) 2pt Use Enhancement (any one can use Ethereal Song of Tongues) +3pt Visibility: automatically visible -3pt Vulnerability: celestial artifact destroyed with corporeal form -4pt Total: 9pt ===== Liber Licentiae Moeticae: http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine.html Last updated 04/29/01(this is usually way out of date) __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices http://auctions.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 14:02:33 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Re: In Nomine traveller > IN Traveller. Great. So, this means tables that you roll on to discover whether you've picked up dissonance, Discord, or been Soul-killed before the game begins? >> But would it be possible for your angel or demon or soldier char to die >> during character generation? That's the real question :) [In original >> Traveller, you could die during Character creation. Happened to me >> several times] Only several? I've yet to have a character survive the roll-up process - after 20 years.... James. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 21:17:01 -0700 (PDT) From: Maurice Lane Subject: IN> May 7, 2001 (ML) Well, the Buddha probably wouldn't have _liked_ these Songs, but that's a minor detail. :) Moe Songs of Reincarnation (Restricted) These Songs were first discovered by ethereals, centuries before the Purity Crusade. Heaven acquired them during that conflict (using somewhat impolite methods): Hell merely forced their tame gods to cough up the knowledge. Today, they are mostly known only by Servitors of Dreams/Nightmares and Destiny/Fate: Nybbas knows them as well, but doesn't often bother to provide them. The past is the past, baby. Note that these Songs only work on mortals who have actually reincarnated: attempting to use a Song of Reincarnation on one that has not (GM call) will result in (CD) points of Mind Hit damage to the performer per attempt. The same backlash will occur if the target of the Song is a celestial or ethereal. Corporeal This Song attempts to tap into the experiences (and experience) of past lives. A successful use of this Song will allow the target (which may also be the performer) to add (half the CD, rounded up) to one Skill, for the duration of the Song. The Skill must be chosen before rolling, and cannot be too modern. This is a general call: for example, boosting Driving and/or most combat skills would be fine, Chemistry and Engineering would be iffy and Computer Operation and Electronics would be not permitted. This Song may not be performed upon the target again until the first one ends. Ethereal The target experiences his or her past lives ... all at once. This mental assault will cause CD Mind Hits for every Essence spent. However, if the target is sufficiently strong-willed he or she will instinctively grasp out for memories of combat. In game terms, a successful Will roll by the target will result in the equivalent of the Corporeal Song being performed on them. The increased Skill will be to whatever weapon that they hold (or Fighting, if they have no weapons in hand) and the bonus will be the unmodified CD of the Will Roll. Celestial This Song actually causes the target to manifest a personality from his or her past life. This personality will have the memories and mundane abilities of their past life, but not that of the modern personality. However, the target will still be able to speak the native language of the modern personality (although usually with the appropriate accent). If the performer knows of a particular past life, he or she may evoke it by taking a -3 to the Song roll. Bonus: Fate, Destiny Available: Dreams, Destiny, Fate, the Media, Nightmares Essence Requirement: 1 to 4 Duration: 1 minute per Essence spent (Corporeal & Celestial); instantaneous (Ethereal) Degree of Disturbance: 2 ===== Liber Licentiae Moeticae: http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine.html Last updated 04/29/01(this is usually way out of date) __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices http://auctions.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 00:56:46 -0400 From: Cameron McCurry Subject: IN> The Angel of Relaxation Maguel, The Angel of Relaxation Mercurian of Creation Special Rites: Get someone that is stressed to calm down (+1 Essence). Get a person to spend more time with his family or friends for one day (+2 Essence) Angel of Relaxation: This is a variation on the normal Mercurian Resonance. Maguel knows at a glance what a person would find relaxing or enjoyable as well as how stressed they are. No doubt, things have been a bit on the rough side for Maguel. His Word is an odd one by Heavenly standards. Angels seem to assume that Relaxation is a *Bad Thing* (tm) and should be avoided at all costs. It doesn't help when you were a demon for the first few centuries of your life that served Sloth. Yes, you heard correctly. Sloth. He's one of the few survivors that didn't end up as an appetizer to Haagenti when he decided that Meserach was a good meal. Faced with reality, he did the one sensible thing that was available to him as Meserach's abode was being destroyed. He smashed his Heart and got out of Hell as fast as he could. In the chaos, no one noticed him fleeing and he took full advantage of that happy fact. Within moments, he was on Earth with no connections, few options and a bleak future. But he wasn't going to mope around over this. Maguel knew that all he had to do was keep his eyes open, spend as little Essence as possible and do everything he could not to attract the attention of The Game or the Host. He found a group of Renegades and Outcasts that had banded together for survival about a year later. Things were good; they kept to themselves, didn't harm anyone and the Cherub in their group was a damn good brewer. Then one night, he got into a discussion with a Mercurian about Heaven. The Intercessionist had been cast out a few months ago and wanted to return to the Host. Maguel got into an earnest discussion about it and wondered why someone would want to serve Heaven. He found that the Mercurian made some excellent points and he began to think that maybe things weren't really that bad on the other side. You can now imagine his shock when he found out that the Mercurian was Eli in disguise. The Archangel of Creation waited until Maguel was through stammering in terror then quietly Redeemed him. Maguel spent several centuries in Heaven unlearning his selfish behavior and making up for his past. He was sent down to Earth just after World War 2 and took to his new assignment with enthusiasm. What he began to notice was that a lot of people simply worked far too hard. He saw too many people working themselves to death and not enjoying life properly. The Mercurian took it upon himself to teach people how to relax. This drew the attention of Judgment in short order. They interrogated him mercilessly over the course of several days. They feared that Maguel was on the road to teaching people about being Slothful and were determined to put an end to him right then and there. But in the course of their investigation, the Triad of Judgment learned that Maguel was not doing evil. He knew, perhaps better than anyone else, that there is a fine line between relaxation and laziness. With muttered threats, they released him and let him get back to work. Maguel managed to have a great deal of success. He encouraged people to slow down every so often and remember what was important to them. And just before Eli walked out of Heaven, he sponsored Maguel for the Word of Relaxation. Maguel manages to stay quite busy in spite of his Word. He works most often with people that have families and encourages them to not sacrifice a home life for work. He is also very active in getting people to take up some kind of hobby or group activity (David's been pretty pleased with this). So far, he is making some small progress. People seem to be learning that having a good time is not in conflict with a strong work ethic. Even better, he's even been able to get some demons to realize that serving Hell is more work than it's worth and make them consider Heaven. To date, he has three Redemptions to his name. Now, if only he could get a vacation for a week.... ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 22:30:39 -0700 (PDT) From: Maurice Lane Subject: IN> Weird , noncanonical and bright, Bright, BRIGHT Swordy Thought. Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 14:03:03 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Re: Attunements and artifacts >Hmm - in that case, what you want is one of >Laurence's Swords, from page 96 of LR. These have no >point costs, being Superior Relics. You know, I had a vicious thought along these lines earlier today. It's based on what precisely a 'sword' is. Big sharp piece of metal, right? Well, what about bokken? Made out of wood, used for training purposes, but Miyamoto Musashi apparently swore by them as superior to katanas - and if he isn't a Sword Saint* in every sense of the term, he ought to be. I would then personally call a bokken a sword - which means that they don't _have_ to be sharp, and don't _have_ to be made out of metal. Therefore, logically enough, one of those plastic He-Man hollow swords, once it was in Larry's hands, would become a plastic** He-Man hollow sword of Doom, as it would be indestructable, have a +5 to Power (no inherent Power to attacks - it's plastic - but that's still better than a battleax***) and can be squirreled away with no one the wiser. Oh, yeah, double damage to demons. Hand that off to a Soldier and see how close he can get. Heck, have Larry visit Toys R Us for about 15 minutes. Instant demon-killing squad, anyone?**** :) Moe *Somebody with more knowledge than I on the subject should do that writeup. **My interpretation of the LR entry is that swords that Laurence picks up don't actually transform into UberDuraSteel (or whatever), just become ... more Swordy. It's funnier that way, if nothing else. ***I know what you're about to say. "Moe, it'd have a hefty minus to Power _because_ it was cheap plastic, though." To which I would say "Ha! Cheap plastic bends and breaks. This is a Superior relic, which will do neither. I reiterate, a base Power of 5." I'd even argue that you'd get a good Accuracy off of the thing (it's _light_, and fairly aerodynamic). +1 or +2 sounds about right. ****Of course, this completely violates the statement, also in LR, that Laurence gives these things out as high honors only. (Shrug) You have to ask yourself, "Which is a more pleasing mental image: Laurence using this ability to reward only his most dutiful and potent of Servitors, or Laurence using this ability to arm a hundred scared humans trapped in a toy store so that they may go out and give a bunch of Calabim the surprise of their miserable lives?" Call me nuts, but I find a certain poetic justice in the latter scenario. :) ===== Liber Licentiae Moeticae: http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine.html Last updated 04/29/01(this is usually way out of date) __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Auctions - buy the things you want at great prices http://auctions.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 22:58:04 -0700 (PDT) From: Peter Eng Subject: Re: IN>Big Eyed Fluffy Kittens I just had a horrid thought. Not enough of one to do the write up, but I'll send this out and see what happens. How do you think Dominic's kitten is going to react? All of the sudden, he has a new playmate. And since the new kitten is a Servitor of Michaels, you know that Dominic is going to be very concerned. - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=- *scamper scamper scamper* *jump slip slide crash* The two kittens were mock-fighting...well, one of them was. The other one was pulling his punches. This had been going on in the Glades for a few hours now, when an axe tapped on a tree. "Time to go," Michael said. "Kiriel is out of Trauma, and one of Jordi's Guardians has just reported the position of the demon that put her there." "Meow?" "Miaw." "Mrrrowww.." One kitten hurried over to Michael, who picked it up and began walking it to the tether that would provide the shortest path to the target. The other disappeared under a bush, and reappeared a moment later, wearing a cloak. It then scurried off to find Bronwen, in hopes of convincing her to play "catch-my-wing." - ---- Seriously, if Dominic were concerned, he would just add an extra question to the list of the Triad that went to interview the angel of B-E,FKs. Although it might look something like, "What are your intentions towards Dominic's kitten?" "Meow." "Well?" "He's telling the truth, but I have no idea what he said." "Say that again, in Celestial, please." Peter Eng ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 06:01:13 From: "Jo Hart" Subject: IN> Iron Rev:: The Wrap Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone again who submitted a scenario for Iron Rev. They're wonderful, and varied, and people have been fantastically creative with their ingredients, and I think the list is just brilliant. I'd also like to thank everyone who voted for taking the time to read them through! Anyway, with no more ado, here is the result of the popular vote (ie. if you haven't voted yet, bad luck because I did say Friday). All votes are averages (ie. if different numbers of people voted for scenarios, it will even out.) The top two have less than 0.01 between their averages, and they are: The Flea Rider & The Worm that Dieth Not Closely clustered after these were (in order): Long live the Queen! Pyramid of Power Eye of the Needle Ace of Spades Short but Sweet & Undead Flying Insects etc. The scenarios which gave the widest variation in votes (ie. people either loved them or hated them) were: Short & Sweet Stuff of Dreams And those with the narrowest variation (ie. pretty much everyone agreed about them) were: The Worm that Dieth Not & Undead Flying Creatures etc. [Note: Aren't spreadsheets wonderful? Even when people vote PI as their score for a scenario -- you know who you are -- you can just enter it in!] *** Personally, the various plot points that stick in my mind are: The razor-winged butterflies, Archangel Bambi & the hysterical plot summary at the beginning of Gabriel's Personal Apocalypse, huge ethereal ant queens, the ultra-cool renegade who sleeps with the daughters of kings and the sons of dictators (equal opportunity seducer, there), the ethereal of the almighty dollar who excretes relics into the money supply (I don't know what you've been drinking but I wish I could have some too), Pyramid schemes in Hell, and Professor Moriarty as an Impudite of Fate! (Now, if one could only think of a way to use all of them in one game ...) Still, when going through the list for a personal pick, I'm looking mainly for plot seeds or scenarios that I could most easily use -- and that means either being well worked out from the beginning whilst giving players lots of freedom in the resolution, or most inspirational. My favorites here are EDG's Short but Sweet (conveys a lot of information and ideas in a very brief format), and Janet's Worm that Dieth Not (with plenty of information about how to handle the plot hook, and some very cool NPCs to throw into the mix to make things more interesting.) Notes: The Lady and the Scarab (12K): Disqualified for length and for requiring stats on Mammon to run. I liked the scarab of the ages, but thought the backstory was probably overly detailed; this may be just a personal preference, but I like to have the minimum of information I need to understand NPC motives and run the plot. More can be confusing. Eye of the Needle (6K): I liked this scenario a lot. Nice plot hook, but does rely heavily on PCs being fooled by the photograph -- never easy to assume with angelic resonances. Still, very cool, especially the butterflies. Adventure Humanitie Moetic (4.7K): Sorry. I spent 20 minutes trying to decode this before I gave up. The pyramid scheme is an interesting take, but if you want people to understand what you are trying to do, you'll need to write more clearly. I'd be interested to see a summary of this scenario in plain text. Until then, take 10 points for style, and lose a life. Undead Flying Zombi Insects! (9.5K): This is a fun little scenario, that I think would work better if the additional thoughts had been a bit expanded (yes, I am aware of the word limits) to detail more roleplaying potential apart from simple swarm destruction. Long Live the Queen! (6.5K): Another scenario I liked a lot (the ant queen reminds me a lot of some of the bugs in Diablo 2.) Short but Sweet (1.5K): Very cool, very evocative, and potentially involves the illuminati! The plot hook gives players a lot to think about, and looks as though it would be fun to run. Gabriel's Personal Apocalypse (10.2K): (Probably should disqualify this for length, but it is only just over.) This is very wild and wacky, as advertised. I liked it, but I don't entirely buy that Gabriel just hands over the divine fire to a random Lilim, and players would need to at least believe it before they acted. Also, the problem with havnig all these very powerful NPCs running around is finding ways for PCs to have something important to actually do -- especially if one's players aren't always inclined to be satisfied with mere diplomacy. Cool ideas, though. Raiders of the Three Realms (6.7K): I'm a bit biased here because I loved Malachi. If he doesn't exist, then he ought to. Picking up the mantis companion doesn't make a lot of sense (maybe that's just the sort of thing you do when you are a super cool renegade with time on your hands). Other than that, this scenario is a bit linear for my tastes. The Five Second Rule (5.5K): A funny little setup that takes the piss out of gamer sterotypes, which I liked. The scenario itself is a bit dull other than that, though. Might have been worth detailing a few possible extra encounters, either with the Game or with the Impudite. The Flea Rider Dilemma (7.5K): I liked this a lot. However, it is canon that insects are generally too small for vessels, which is why only Kyrios of Jordi can possess them, so on a tyrannical canon note, this won't work. Having said that, I thought the whole scenario was very well worked out, and I liked the plastic puzzle. Great stuff. Cyber-Bugs (1.9K): Another short but sweet plot seed. I liked the use of the glass pyramid at the Louvre, but this just didn't grab me as much as some of the others. Stuff that Dreams are made of (7.3K): I don't know how well this works as an actual scenario, but I did enjoy reading it. Loved the way the demon prince signs off his letters, and the ethereal of the almighty dollar! Actually having Beleth potentially redeem at the end is quite a major event, and there isn't much guidance on what PCs might do once they have located the artifact. I liked the idea that celestials might get addicted to dreaming, though. The adventure of the worm that dieth not (7.2K): Another scenario I very much liked. We need more historical scenarios for IN, really. This was the one I'd most want to actually run for players: nice plot hook, nice detail on what happens next and what PC investigations could uncover, and lovely throwaway NPCs to add to the mix if the pace slows. Great work! The pyramid of power! (7.2K): Another scenario that was a lot of fun to read. This is slightly more limited on PC types due to being mainly set in Hell, and it isn't all that clear on what PCs could actually do to stall the scheme other than destroy the demons involved. Feast of Spades (16K): A bit naughty not to send this to the list -- because that does put it on a very different footing to the other scenarios. In any case, the map is lovely and the vignette was fun to read. I liked the setup and the inclusion of the sorcerous groups a lot; the main reason I didn't like it more was that the conclusion is a bit of a dungeon crawl. Would probably work very well if players liked planning out tactical assaults (which a lot do.) Anyway, thank you all again! It's been a blast! jo _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 02:43:39 -0400 From: Cameron McCurry Subject: IN> Comes the Redeemer The demon's hair was plastered with sweat, his breathing ragged and labored. He had been bound to the chair for several days now and was feeling exhaustion from his efforts at trying to break free. Blood from several wounds flowed down the chair and onto the floor in a slick puddle. Nothing the Impudite had done yielded any success. Whatever these cuffs were made out of, they were strong enough to withstand his strength. And he couldn't see the person who had kept him here so charming him was out of the question. From behind, he could hear the door click open and lock shut. The Taker shuddered in terror. For three days, this person had caused him pain. He lived in fear of hearing that calm emotionless voice now and would do anything at all to not hear it again. But even pleading for the oblivion of Soul death was not helping him. The one who held him was immune to it. "Good morning, Pithon." the man said. "I trust you are feeling better." "Please," the Impudite moaned. "No more. I told you everything. I just want to-" "Seek asylum in Heaven. Yes, yes, I heard this. In fact, you were telling me this within our first half hour together." This much was true. Pithon had no idea what the man had done to him, but the pain was more excruciating than anything he had ever faced before. He was howling in agony as if it was his own Dread Prince that was administering the pain. "And you have stayed with that ever since. Very impressive, Pithon. Usually, I have to weather a few days of threats against me and anyone else who happens to be in the room. It gets very tiresome. But you still haven't answered the question correctly." "Why do you wish to seek Heaven?" This question had been repeated incessantly since Pithon had been bound into this chair. He thought he answered it correctly so long ago, but this...angel wasn't satisfied with anything he said. But he had reflected on this in the times that the man had left him alone. The Taker took a deep breath and prayed from the bottom of his Heart that he was answering it right this time. "I am...ashamed of what I was. I can't bear being a demon anymore." He could now see the man's face clearly. There was no expression there, nothing in his eyes. The Impudite stared at him with the eye that hadn't been swollen shut, and swallowed his terror. He waited for an eternity before he heard that voice again. "You know that there are those who seek Heaven and they get destroyed when they are bathed in it's Glory for the first time, Pithon?" "No, I didn't. But I don't care. Please. I just-" "You don't care if you are destroyed? Your forces will be dispersed throughout the Symphony and all that will remain is just memories that are easily forgotten." "I don't want to die," Pithon admitted. "But I don't want to live as I was anymore. I want to make things right." "You have a lot to make right, don't you?" the man asked. The Impudite nodded and tears began to flow down his face. He didn't feel any shame over it though; the grief felt...clean. He began to weep openly, feeling the horror of the past few days be replaced by a sense of hope that he dared to believe was real. The manacles fell away and Pithon buried his head in his hands. Iphedeiah stepped out of the room and walked calmly into his office. He bowed before the young woman that was sitting in front of his desk and staring at him in open disapproval. "Forgive me for keeping you waiting, Archangel Novalis. I believe Pithon is ready to seek the mercy of Heaven and that he will survive Redemption." Iphedeiah is an Elohim of Dominic's. Originally a Habbalah of Asmodeus', he fled to Heaven after having Emptiness feed back upon him and open his eyes to what he truly was. He threw himself upon the mercy of the Judgment Triad that found him on Earth and was allowed to serve Dominic. His time as a Punisher taught him how to use mental and physical anguish to make a person beg for mercy. As one of the Powers, he began to see how the lessons he had learned could be used for Heaven's cause. He is sent to Earth whenever a Renegade is found that seeks Redemption for questionable motives. It is Iphedeiah's task to make them more able to survive and to encourage selflessness by making them see clearly the error of their ways. His secondary task is to determine which Archangel would be best suited for the new angel. Dominic has granted him an Artifact to help his interrogations with Redemption candidates.; a pair of handcuffs that cannot be broken by any demon. If used on the host of a Shedite, the demon is kept within the vessel as if struck with the Bound Discord. Although his methods are brutal, Iphedeiah is incredibly successful. Even Michael grants the Elohite a bit of respect for the number of newly redeemed angels that end up in his service. In the years that he has worked with Renegades, he has only been forced to Soul kill one. Amongst demons, Iphedeiah is becoming something of a bogeyman. They tell tales of his cruelty and there are many that demons walk softly if they know he is in the area. The Elohite takes no pleasure in this or in the work that he must do. He simply feels that he has a job to do and will stop at nothing to pull a demon away from Hell. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 16:52:20 +0800 From: "Manny Nepomuceno" Subject: IN> Malakite of War, indeed. Oh come on, Moe. Malakite of War? That's too pat, too easy. An Elohite of Stone, now that would be a challenge... :) Manny Neps > > Hmm. Angel of Big-Eyed Fluffy Kittens. Yeah, a > Malakite of War would just _love_ to have that > Word*... > > Moe > ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 16:52:20 +0800 From: "Manny Nepomuceno" Subject: IN> Malakite of War, indeed. Oh come on, Moe. Malakite of War? That's too pat, too easy. An Elohite of Stone, now that would be a challenge... :) Manny Neps > > Hmm. Angel of Big-Eyed Fluffy Kittens. Yeah, a > Malakite of War would just _love_ to have that > Word*... > > Moe > ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 17:47:55 +0800 From: "Manny Nepomuceno" Subject: IN> Superior Roles: Khalid Today, I think, I have Elohim on the brain. Could have been better, but I have two more Elohim to work on. Enjoy. :) Manny Neps ... MAKING MARRIAGE WORK A Guide For Relationships in the 21st Century by Carter Michaels, Ph.D. 224 pages, +ACQ-9.95, Doubleday, 2001 +ACI-An incredible book...full of ancient wisdom and truth phrased in everyday language.+ACI- -- The New York Times +ACI-Old wine in new jars has never tasted so good.+ACI- -- Kirkus Reviews +ACI-Carter Michaels is the new guru of relationships. Making Marriage Work is but the first in what promises to be a great body of work dealing with life and love in our modern age.+ACI- -- M. Scott Peck, author of the Road Less Travelled ... The staff at Doubleday knew the book would be big, but no one could have anticipated just how big it would be. The success of Making Marriage Work made careers and pushed its author, Carter Michaels, from relative obscurity into preeminence among self-help gurus. A marriage counselor from Philadelphia, Carter Michaels had been working with couples for more than twenty years before trying his hand at writing+ADs- for a man known to be taciturn and introspective, he had a style that was both poetic and easy to read -- two traits which served him and his book well. Although it was never intended to be a selling point, one of the most talked about traits of Dr. Michaels is the fact that he's not a Christian -- instead, he is a staunch defender of Islam, and has been honored by a number of Islamic communities and groups for his work. He does not overtly quote from the Koran in his book, although many of the things he writes about have their roots in the philosophies spoken of in the Koran. He embraces ecumenism openly, and has lunched with several Archbishops of the Catholic Church in an effort to bring it about. Everyone who has spoken with him about this marvels at his great faith in Allah and in the future of humanity. Of course, the truth is that Carter Michaels doesn't really exist. To be more exact, Carter Michaels is a Role that the Archangel of Faith, Khalid, often retreats to in his efforts to understand the way the world works. Most angels who encounter Khalid remember him for both his serenity and his righteousness+ADs- few recall that the Elohim, who count Khalid among their number, are counselors without peer. Also, Khalid's Word includes faith in one's spouse and in the institution of marriage -- he sees marriage counseling as a natural extension of his Word. The Archangel of Faith is remarkably restrained and compassionate when dealing with his patients. He's heard it all, from tales of simple misunderstandings to physical domestic abuse. Careful use of his Elohite resonance and the occasional assignment of a Servitor or two to help out have always led to success -- sometimes the marriage breaks up, but even then the couple end up on good terms, having learned something about themselves and relationships in the process. No one has so far managed to uncover his Role -- although with the relative success of his book, demons of the Media have been sending feelers to the good doctor, who has also been laying some traps of his own...while working on his second book. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 23:48:27 +1000 From: "Shane" Subject: Re: IN> No funny title this time. It simply won't help. On 10 May 2001, at 20:31, Maurice Lane wrote: ... > None of this makes Hemah feel any better. He was > _supposed_ to be the next Angel of One Bad Mother... > (Shut Your Mouth), but there was this weird twanging > sound, everything went all bluish-purple for a moment > and suddenly there was a small white kitten sitting on > the floor of the Seraphim Council chambers looking > around and desperately trying not to swear. Y'know, I find it even more amusing to consider it a Divine Intervention - after all, God has a sense of humour too. :) *and Michael can still sponsor another angel for the intended Word... *hmm. Moe never did say Infernal, just unfavorable - to whom...? *Lucifer loses to a Big Fluffy Eyed Kitten? *hang on, anyone seen that The Tick episode? (**) *REDEEMS after finding he can't hurt the Big Fluffy Eyed Kitten? cheers, Shane. (**) "If you're so Evil, why don't you... (reveals cute kitten) EAT THIS KITTEN!" (kitten:"miew") ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 12 May 2001 22:45:35 +0800 From: "Manny Nepomuceno" Subject: IN> Servants of the Fallen V Hola, I'm allowed to be cheesy every so often. :) Manny Neps Haniel Elohite Master of War and Friend of Valor Corporeal Forces 5 Strength 10 Agility 10 Ethereal Forces 5 Intelligence 12 Precision 8 Celestial Forces 5 Will 10 Perception 10 Vessels: Human male (Asian male)/4, Charisma 1, Human female (Caucasian female)/3 Attunements: Seraph of War, Elohite of War, Elohite of Valor*, Call to Arms**, One to One, Hunt (from Laurence), Vassal of War, Friend of the Fighters, Master of Valor, Vassal of Valor***, Friend of the Brave**** Known Skills: Fighting (various styles)/6, Small Weapon (knife)/4, Large Weapon (axe)/6, Large Weapon (sword)/6, Languages (English/4, German/2, Japanese/3)***** Known Songs: Blades (Corporeal/2, Ethereal/2, Celestial/4), Tongues (Corporeal/1, Etheral/2, Celestial/1), Attraction (Corporeal/4), Light (Ethereal/1, Celestial/4), Shields (Corporeal/2, Ethereal/3, Celestial/5) * Elohite of Valor: same as Baal's Habbalite of the War attunement. ** Call to Arms: By spending 3 Essence, Haniel can make his teammates more alert. Human allies will lose all fatigue (and will not gain any until the end of the battle.) Sleeping allies awaken in time for combat. Stunned and unconscious allies come out of their stupor. This attunement, unfortunately, cannot bring a celestial out of Trauma prematurely. The attunement has a range of 10 yards in all directions. *** Vassal of Valor: When faced with multiple opponents, Haniel gains an extra attack for each opponent he faces beyond the first. Beyond three opponents, however, each attack is at -1 Accuracy. He cannot attack more than five times in a round. This only works for opponents he engages in hand-to-hand or unarmed combat. **** Friend of the Brave: As a Friend of Valor, Haniel's vessels are toughened and can withstand more damage. Each of his vessels have 1.5 x regular body hits. ***** Haniel has learned and used a number of human languages through the years. These are but a few of the modern languages he is known to use. He also knows a great many more skills than these, but is rarely called upon to exercise them. Haniel is an ancient Elohite, one of the first and most famous of that Choir. Like Khalid, Archangel of Faith, Haniel is perceived as, paradoxically, both cold-blooded and serene. For an Elohite, he's popular among the Servitors of War, and is very, very well liked by Servitors of the Sword. Truth be told, he's one of the few members of the Order of the Eternal Sword who doesn't serve Laurence -- although rumor has it that the Archangel of the Sword would like to find a way to recruit him from Michael's ranks. Baal created him millennia ago and assigned him to work with humans -- to teach them to fend for themselves in a world they were only beginning to master. Unfortunately, Haniel discovered that there was more to his work than mere teaching. The mind of prehistoric man was filled with fantastic horrors, inadvertently spawning the same beasts in the Marches, and some of these horrors had learned to walk the earth. Haniel became a demon hunter in a time before demons, slaying creatures that were the predecessors of today's ethereal gods, and rose in rank and honor to become one of Baal's finest warriors. When Baal rebelled against Heaven, Haniel felt a divine fury rise within him. He denied the anger, refusing the lure of the dark wings...and learned, for the first time, what it meant to become dissonant. He has never become dissonant since. He fought long and hard against his brothers, many of whom had joined Baal in rebelling against God. Twice in the battle he found himself fighting alongside the Firstborn, Michael, who smiled grimly upon him and his bloody work. When the last of the Fallen had been ushered out of Heaven, the new Archangel of War sought out Haniel and offered him a place in his ranks. The Elohite accepted without hesitation. In recent years, Haniel has been spending more and more time in the Groves, teaching other warriors to fight. He has a special hatred of Baal and demons of the War, although he (apparently) does not suffer dissonance for it. From time to time, his responsibilities as a member of the Order of the Eternal Sword demand his attention...but then he returns to Heaven fairly quickly. Unlike a lot of Swordies, after all, he has no compunctions about fighting dirty...and while he may not be Word-bound, his very name is enough to strike fear into the hearts of most demons. (Haniel is identified in the APG as a warrior Elohite who distinguished himself during the Fall. His attunements and Distinctions from Valor are conjectural. He is not a point-balanced character.) ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #2220 ******************************** The material here is (C) 2001 Steve Jackson Games, Incorporated. All rights reserved.