What the Hell is this thing?

I have been visiting (and recently interning) at a Sudbury Valley School, where many of the students enjoy playing RPGs. Being a massive gamer myself, I quickly impressed them with the size and variety of my dice collection and then moved swiftly into a discussion of my favorite games. When I returned from summer vacation as an official intern, one of the games I mentioned was a game called Nobilis, which some people have said (wrongly) is impossible to play. I have decided to play with a group that includes two seven-year-olds. All of the students with whom I am playing have repeatedly impressed me with their creativity, so this is a place for me to collect their ideas, my ideas, and what happens when the two collide.

Index Imperatorum

Lovaali, a True God

Diyabh Lovaali

• Bil (Choice)
• California (Trust)
• Simmons (Food)
• Venom (Destruction)
• Wyoming (Zombies)

???, an Aaron's Serpent

Saknussemm

• Beulah Moesser (Ice Cream)
• Cephissus (Dragonflies)
• Iogara (Skulls)
• Nulla (Hatred)
• Zachariah Bacon (Fairy Tales)

The ArchDean, a ???

Illuminati University

• Clark M. Walters (Experiments)
• Dr. What⁷ (Alternatives)
• Lilly Ann Bie (Control)
• Patricia Miller (Counterculture)
• That Dean (Magic)
• The Unseen Dean (the Hidden)
• William Waldon (Mundanity)
• "Zen Surrealism"
• "Social Anti-Sciences"

???, a ???

al-Amarja

• Sir Arthur Compton (Transgression)

Diosu, a ???

Ohtori Gakuen

• Himemiya Anshii
• Ohtori Akio (Revelation)
• Tenjou Utena (Adolescence)

The Krakken, a True God

The Hungering Depths

• Currents
• the Hunt
• Monsters
• Obscurity
• Oceans

The Professor, a ???

Townsville

• Blossom (Sugar)
• Bubbles (All Things Nice)
• Buttercup (Spice)

Balthiel, a Fallen Angel

Locus Balthiel

• Antipathy Jones (Emnity)
• Heinrich Bärmann (Revenge)
• (Blades)
• (Memory)
• (Obsession)

The Rainbow Serpent

???

• (Survival)
• (Strength Born of Fear)

Semiaza, a Fallen Angel

???

• Tanit (the Crooked Ways)
• (Adornment)
• (Astrology)

???, a ???

???

• Itzpapalotl (Perversions)
• (Butterflies)
• (Lies)

Zanaphiel, an Angel

???

• Sen Ti-Lung (Calligraphy)

Dr. Mirabilis/Kaldath, a ???

???

• Samuel Goldstein (Crime)
• Margaret (Spectacle)
• Keisha (Genius)

Marciel, an Angel

???

• Albert Morceuf (the Romantic Age)
• (Jewels)
• (Zan Shin)

Prasinos, a Lightlord

???

• Wallace Clemens (Cooking)
• Caroline Staci (History)
• Opus Dialecticus (Logic)
• Koh Li-Leng (Potential)
• Teller (Stories)
• Kasey Chasca (Twilight)

Spirits of History (stolen from nobilis.mapache.org)

Spirits of History

The history of a person or object is visible as a kind of four-dimensional trail. One can follow something's trail backwards to see where it has been, and how it changed over time. This is not precisely vision -- if observing the history of a tree, for instance, it does not matter that the past of the tree is contained in the area that is now inside the tree. The sapling, seedling, and seed are all still visible inside the tree. Large trees are fun to look at, because the actual history lines up so nicely with the rings recording that history. Also, if something has moved a long distance, one does not need to physically follow its trail to see where it has been (although one does if one wishes to see what else has been there). It is much easier to focus on a physical object, then follow its trail, than to pick up the trail of something that has simply passed through an area at some point, but it can certainly be done. [This sort of sight is what the minor divinations are. Major divinations are like zooming way out to see great swathes of history at once, and require effort, not just concentration.]

Some interesting historical nexuses (nexii?):

• The Library of Alexandria, which appears to actually have been destroyed at least three different times, by at least three different people. The time between the events is curiously difficult to see.
• The overlap between certain American civil war battles and their historical reenactments. Specifically, those small areas in which every individual that has ever fought (or pretended to fight) has moved in precisely the same way.

The other sort of spirit of history is a ghost. Ghosts are formed when large numbers of people remember a person or event more or less correctly. This fixes "echoes" of that event into the world, which can occasionally be seen by mortals. These echoes generally consist of a vision of a strongly remembered portion of the event, which repeats over and over, often on significant dates. As the memory of the event or person fades, the ghost also fades. However, if the person or event is remembered incorrectly, an interesting thing happens. If only one version of the event or person remains in the public consiousness, the ghost alters to fit that perception. Some vestiges of the true nature of the event will usually remain, but the main body will come to resemble the remembered version, as opposed to the actual version. If there are several versions of the event or person in common belief, the ghost begins to develop free will. If there are enough versions believed strongly enough, it can become a proper entity in its own right, with personality and the ability to move about, even to places it is not remembered as having visited. Frequently, particularly incompatible versions will split off into separate entities.

Some interesting ghosts:

• Julius Caesar, who detests Shakespeare for "that awful, awful play."
• William Shakespeare, most of whom detest John Madden (not the football commentator) for "that awful, awful movie."
• That one Shakespeare that really likes the movie.
• Napoleon Bonaparte, who exists in about 25 different versions and often possesses mental patients.
• Hypatia, a librarian at the Library of Alexandria, who now appears to have been present for at least two versions of its destruction, although she was only alive for the last one.
• Jesus Christ (Jewish), Jesus Christ (Christian), and Jesus Christ (Muslim). They don't get along.

Caroline Staci, Domina Historiae (stolen from nobilis.mapache.org)

Origin

Caroline Staci, a graduate student in the archaeology department of Oxford University, was spending her summer on the island of Mayapore assisting at a dig. The team was excavating a peculiar temple, which included depictions and small statues of lions, which are not known in the area. (Interesting side note: Singapore apparently got its name from a prince who saw a creature he thought was a lion, and who later founded a settlement called Singa-pura, or lion city.) When the island was removed from reality to become the Viridian Labyrinth, echoes of Prasinos washed backwards in time, causing both the prince's vision and the creation of the temple. Caroline became the Power of History; most of the rest of the archaeological team was killed as the earth twisted into a four-dimensional [Klein bottle], which is somewhat stressful for the three-dimensional objects trapped inside.

Attributes

Aspect	1	Metahuman	(5/5? AMPs)
Domain	5	Regal	(5/5? DMPs)
Realm	1	Radiant	(5/5? RMPs)
Spirit	3	Sunfire	(4/5? SMPs)

Plus 5 extra miracle points

and 2 character points

Limit

Light Touch (require anchor's consent to send miracles other than ghost miracles through them)

Virtue

Honesty

Code of Truth

1. Truth is the highest principle.
2. The truth should be remembered and shared (corollary: lies should be suppressed).
3. The true nature of a thing ought not be changed (specifically, people shouldn't be made to do things they wouldn't otherwise do).

"Oh devil! truth is better than much profit. I have searched over the grounds of my belief, and if wife and child and name and fame were all to be lost to me one after the other as the penalty, still I will not lie."
-- T. H. Huxley

Anchors

• Dr. David Hawkins (erudite, elderly, kind, shy)
  • Dr. Hawkins is chair of the Ancient History department at Oxford University. Like [the rest of the Oxford Ancient History departmental faculty] , he specializes in Greek history.) He is a distinguished, white-haired fellow, but still hale and active. He is a kindly man, given to frequent quotations, who is very well-informed about ancient history, especially in his areas of study, and keeps up with all the journals. His most important flaw is that he is rather shy and intensely dislikes conflict. He has been known to turn off all the lights in his office and pretend not to be in to avoid excessively demanding students and colleagues. However, he has a strong sense of responsibility and can be very helpful as long as nobody wants him to argue with anyone.

• Ron Schroeder (enthusiastic, obsessive, entertaining, short-tempered)
  • Mr. Schroeder is a Texas middle school history teacher and Civil War reenactor. He is quite tall and is missing half of two fingers on his right hand. He is very enthusiastic about American history, especially Texas history, and often comes to class wearing replica uniforms from various wars. He has an extensive collection of uniforms and weaponry for re-enactment purposes, and spends a lot of time making, repairing, or using them. He loves his job, but can get very upset when students make fun of him or simply don't pay attention.

• Northwest Smith (time-traveller, nerves of steel, idealistic)
  • Northwest is from an alternate version of the 1920's. He's been spending the last mumble years wandering the timestreams making trouble for personal profit. Eventually he caused a change way larger than his license allowed, at the instigation of [Lysander Hawkins]. As the man on the ground, Northwest was the first to be implicated in what I originally assumed to be more ominous than it actually was. In the interest of keeping him out of future trouble without stopping his roaming about in the alternate histories (Lysander's request) he's working for me now.

• (This space reserved for future use. Piss me off, NPCs, I dare you. I've done it once, I can do it again!)

Bonds

• 3 Universities in general
• 1 Oxford in particular
• 2 Dr. Hawkins
• 2 Mr. Schroeder
• 4 Historical reenactment, and the people who do it (this includes things like [Old Sturbridge Village] (a demonstration American Colonial town), Civil War reenactment, and so on, but not the SCA or other entertainment-oriented, accuracy-defiling types)
• 2 Libraries
• 1 The memory of the Library of Alexandria
• 3 Teachers of history
• 2 Accuracy in textbooks (a rare and fragile thing)

Sample Miracles

2. Lesser Divination. Learn the history of an object or place I or my anchor can touch. Determine whether an account of a historical event is true or not.
3. Lesser Preservation. Protect a document or artifact from wear or damage. Make humans present at an event remember it for a long time. Make someone remember what they are told about a historical event.
4. Lesser Creation. Create a record of an event. Create a memory of a historical event in someone who was not present. Create an artifact or historical document (Though newly created, this artifact or document will have been present during the historical time it is now from. It wasn't until now, but now it has been. I need more tenses.)
5. Lesser Destruction. Destroy a historical artifact or record. Remove someone's memory of an event.
5. Greater Divination. Learn anything that has ever happened anywhere, assuming no Powers were involved.
6. Lesser Change. Change minor details of what happened in the past. Change the writing on historical documents. Change someone's memory of an event.
6. Greater Preservation. Make an event be remembered for all time. Preserve a set of historical documents or artifacts from any damage ever.
7. Greater Creation. Create an entirely new historical event. Make hundreds of people remember an event, regardless of whether they were present or not.
8. Greater Destruction. Destroy all artifacts or documents relating to a historical event. Destroy all memory of an event.
9. Greater Change. Change the outcome of a historical event, such as the winner of a battle or the survival of the Roanoke colony.

Design

The design of History is a small branch of dark green fir (representing Time) wrapped in three light purple periwinkles (representing Memory).

Wallace Clemens, Dominus Cocturae (stolen from nobilis.mapache.org)

Origin

Wallace Clemens, a fairly mild-mannered, kinda chubby kid who got along pretty well with everyone, was picked on some, but not more than anyone, and lived a fairly benign childood one day, aged 13 or so, realized that the reason so many chinese food restaurants used MSG (which Wallace is highly allergic to) because it makes foods taste MORE. "I can make better tasting food than that! Without help! So there!" ...and so, a dedication to the art was born. Years later (about 40), after several successful restaurants being created and sold, each symbolizing a true mastery of another type of cuisine, and then WHOP! All sorts of people died, and I was IN CHARGE.

The Code of Light Grey

1. Humanity must live, and live forever.
2. Some ends justify more means than other ends.
3. Humans must be protected, particularly from themselves.

Attributes

Aspect	3	Inhuman	(5 AMPs)
Domain	5	Regal	(5 DMPs)
Realm	1	Radiant	(5 RMPs)
Spirit	1	Hearthfire	(5 SMPs)

Gifts

• Elemental: may replace body with a construct of domain.

Restrictions

• Breaking Bread (Cannot refuse to feed and provide refreshment to any in need; cannot harm anyone eating with me)
• Hated by animals (I eat so many animals...)

Anchors

• My wife, Cecelia: A motherly woman, friendly, good at baking...and stubborn beyond belief. Two-souled.
• Chairman Kaga
  • [Biography of the real-world Kaga]

Bonds

• 2 points: Chairman Kaga.
• 3 points: My wife.
• 3 points: Set of chef's knives.
• 1 point: Chef's hat.
• 3 points: Greenhouse (of herbs, fruits, and vegetables, 1 point each)
• 2 points: The guy who taught my mortal self how to cook, back in the day.
• 3 points: MY restaurant. A fusion restaurant, in the Bay area.
• 1 point: Farms, worldwide. Animal farms, wheat farms, etc.
• 1 point: The 10 best mortal chefs in the world.
• 1 point: Magical spice rack. Always full! Easy access!

Sample Miracles

• 2. Lesser Divination. Know the recipe (entire process of having created a food-item, once the ingredients were procured) Or, pull a recipe out of someone's memory of a meal. Know their favorite food, etc. Know what anyone (everyone?) is eating (or last ate?) at any given point. (What was some famous guy's last meal?) Say we're going to bring George Washington back to life, and we want him to be friendly. Greater divination means I can know and replicate and SERVE a repetition of his favorite meal ever, made exactly the same (and probably improved upon!).
• 3. Lesser Preservation. Preserve a bunch of food! Er, keep food from going bad, for as long as necessary. E.g., a prepared meal does not get cold, get warm, go bad...the food will last forever, and you don't even have to put it in the fridge! It will still age, however, if it's supposed to (wine, beer, cheese)
• 4. Lesser Creation. Make dinner. A lot of dinner! Instantly! To my specifications! ...and it doesn't *taste* like instant dinner. Or, teach someone how to cook, instantly.
• 5. Lesser Destruction. Remove someone's memory of a food or a culinary experience. For instance, you don't know you hate broccoli anymore! Or, you don't remember what you had for dinner last night. Make lots of food go bad, or become distasteful.
• 5. Greater Divination. Hear dinner conversation. Learn the cause of famine. Know who created a certain notion. Who's responsible for stir-fry? Know all that which has been spoken by anyone while drunk...
• 6. Lesser Change. Change preferences of national/ethnic cuisine (Indian food is no longer spicy). Change what someone's favorite food is. Make all that moldy cheese in the fridge good again!
• 6. Greater Preservation. ...stop food from going bad worldwide! Make ALL FOOD LAST FOREVER. Make the neverending jar of pickles! Make milk have longer expiration dates!
• 7. Greater Creation. Create a cornucopia, pantry which is always full, a feast which never ends
• 8. Greater Destruction. Remove one quality from food, worldwide. "Salty foods no longer exist." Or, cause famine. Destroy food sources for a large section of the world (create a desert?)
• 9. Greater Change. Turn something, worldwide, edible. "You can now eat cars! Mmmmm. Greasy." Change the nutritional quality of a food source. "Chocolate is now good for you!"

Philippe Vilmorin, Dominus Fatae (stolen from nobilis.mapache.org)

• Viscount of Fate
• His design contains [Marigold] and [Canary Grass], which symbolize Despair and Determination.
• French Nobleman
• Affiliated with The Wild
• Temporal Control Board member

Korrin-786, Domina Progressi (stolen from nobilis.mapache.org)

• Baroness of Progress
• Her design contains [Goat's-rue] and [Nightshade], the flowers of Reason and Sorcery.
• Middle-black woman in a utilitarian jumpsuit with a nametag; half her head is porcelain and her eyes are silver metal
• Affiliated with The Dark
• Met with Logic

God of Concrete

(Frederick R.C. Clarke and Richard Granville Jones) (from The Hymn Book of the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada (1971 edition))

God of concrete, God of steel,

God of piston and of wheel,

God of pylon, God of steam,

God of girder and of beam,

God of atom, God of mine:

all the world of power is thine.

Lord of cable, Lord of rail,

Lord of freeway and of mail,

Lord of rocket and of flight,

Lord of soaring satellite,

Lord of lightning?s flashing line:

all the world of speed is thine.