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Chaosium Digest Volume 11 Number 06
Chaosium Digest Volume 11, Number 6
Date: Sunday, August 20, 1995
Number: 1 of 1
Contents:
Starting a Nephilim Campaign (Rowe & Appel) NEPHILIM
Editor's Note:
This issue of the digest contains an article that Eric Rowe and I
recently put together on starting a Nephilim Campaign. It's been
posted a few other places, but I thought it would be useful here too.
Shannon
NEW ELECTRONIC RESOURCES
* Nephilim Character Sheets
ftp://ftp.csua.berkeley.edu/pub/chaosium/nephilim/character-sheets
This directory contains both a postscript Nephilim character sheet,
and a postscript Nephilim past lives sheet, all created by Dan
Pettersson (pson@Manila.DoCS.UU.SE).
* Nephilim ML Archive
http://ayup.res.wpi.edu/~mikey/nephilim.html
Michael V. Caprio Jr. (mikecap@WPI.EDU) has recently been enhancing
the Nephilim ML Archive page with gifs and other cool stuff. If you
haven't seen it before, check it out.
-------------------------
From: Eric Rowe & Shannon Appel
Subject: Starting a Nephilim Campaign
System: Nephilim
STARTING A NEPHILIM CAMPAIGN
by Eric Rowe and Shannon Appel
Copyright (c) 1995 Chaosium Inc.
Imagine the world as it exists today, just beyond your window:
squalling babies scream, seizing their first gasp of hard-won air;
children skip merrily to school, their innocent eyes seeing everything
as new; teenagers jet through the dusk in their old, battered cars,
their independence finally won; millions of mature adults file back
and forth to work every day; and in a darkened room, scarcely large
enough for a bed, an old man dies.
Such is the world of Nephilim, but there is also much more. Hidden in
the darkest shadows of modern society, ever shrinking from the light,
are ancient secrets. They tell of Atlantis, the continent which truly
sank below the waves millennium ago; of the Templars, who have waged a
mystical war since the rise of human civilization; of Sumeria, where
the King Gilgamesh nearly gained the secret of immortality; and of the
alchemists, who have perfected the art of transmutation for a thousand
years. Most important is the secret of the Nephilim, a race of
immortal spirits who have guided human evolution since the rise of
sentience. In all the world, the Nephilim alone truly control magic.
It is a bright and wonderful art, which may bring a new era of hope to
everything that is.
In Nephilim, players take on the roles of these immortal spirits,
reborn in the modern world. In the shadows of society, where mortals
fear to tred, they interact with secret societies, allies and enemies
alike who have learned of their existence. The Rosicrucians, the
Assassins, the Discordians, the Illuminati and the Sufi are just a few
among many. Despite all obstacles, the Nephilim hope to find their
Holy Grail, to return to the serenity of Atlantis, to herald the
arrival of the Age of Aquarius, or at least, to gain understanding
once more of the universe about them.
This article is intended to aid a Nephilim gamemaster in creating just
such a campaign, where the players might gain new understanding by
piercing the secrets of the universe. In it, you will find ideas for
preparing and running a campaign. The emphasis is put on building a
campaign around secrets, slowly unveiling deeper levels. As has
already been said, Nephilim is set in the modern world, but the more
the players dare to delve into the realm of unseen mystery, the more
they come to understand that what they cannot see is perhaps more real
than what they can.
PREPARING AND STARTING A NEPHILIM CAMPAIGN
Despite the intense scientific scrutiny of everything in our modern
world, there are still secrets everywhere. Tales of crop circles, the
Loch Ness Monster and the Sasquatch have all become a part of modern
legend. However, the strange tales of The Weekly World News, and even
the unanswered questions of The New York Times are no less worthy of
becoming Nephilim adventures. By far, the easiest way to prepare a
Nephilim campaign is to learn to ask "Why?", and "What else is there
to this story?" Nephilim gamemasters would do well simply to carefully
examine the real world and figure out how strange events fit into the
world of the Nephilim.
There are many writers who perceive some of the secrets behind the
world, and we strongly suggest perusing their work in preparation for
a Nephilim campaign.
Among books, Foucault's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco, Tales of the Knights
Templar, edited by Katherine Kurtz, The Last Coin, by James Blaylock,
The Paper Grail, by James Blaylock, Last Call, by Tim Powers, The
Anubis Gates, by Tim Powers and innumerable Illuminatus! books by
Robert Anton Wilson, are suggested for their insights into hidden
secrets.
Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,
Highlander, and Big Trouble in Little China are just a few of the
movies which may also provide ideas for a Nephilim Campaign.
CREATING PLAYER CHARACTERS
After reviewing a few sources for inspiration, and perhaps developing
a few embryonic adventure ideas, you will no doubt want to gather your
players together, and have them create characters. The Nephilim
rulesbook has one of the most expansive character creation systems in
role-playing, and full advantage should be taken of this. In addition,
Chronicle of the Awakenings has extra character generation material,
as well as useful rule expansions.
As the players work through their past lives, you should discuss it
with them. If multiple players all lived during the same age, find out
if the knew each other. Were they allies, opponents, or did they never
come into contact? Ask players about the importance of their past
lives. How did they feel about Gilgamesh's Quest for immortality? What
did they think of the birth of the Age of Reason? Were they awed by
the ancient Pharaohs of Egypt?
If you have time, run each of the characters through a mini-adventure
set in one of her past lives. This mini-adventure need be no more than
a single scene, but it should highlight an important event in that
past life, and will also give the player an opportunity to better
understand her new character.
Finally, when character creation is complete, you should take a look
through the characters' past lives. Take note of how they lived and
how they died. All of these facts can be used as valuable seeds for
future adventure. Perhaps players will want to revenge themselves
against those who killed them last, or maybe they will want to recover
some item which was lost to them when they last fell into undreaming
sleep. The possibilities are endless.
The Awakening
When character creation is done, it is time for an awakening. The
rebirth of the player Nephilim into the modern age, and their first
timid investigations of that strange land should comprise your first
Nephilim adventure.
Ask yourself the following questions: Where are the Nephilim's stases?
What causes the Nephilim to awaken? How will the Nephilim react to the
strange technology of the modern world? Who controls the place where
the Nephilim awaken? Are they friend or foe? Do they offer help or
hinderance? A good example introductory scenario is contained in The
Gamemaster's Veil.
You should use the first adventure to introduce the players to the
place where they awakened. Let them meet the other Nephilim of the
area and learn the rules of conduct. Also, you should prod them to
make important decision, such as how to recover their stases, if they
need to, and also what to do with the lives of their new-found
Simulacra.
BUILDING A CAMPAIGN BASED ON SECRETS
You have now had your players create their detailed characters and run
them through an introductory adventure. Where do you go from there
though? What is the very next step and what happens ten adventures
from now? These are the questions that a gamemaster must answer when
preparing any campaign. In Nephilim, however, the gamemaster can get
away with doing less preparation than in most other games. All she
needs are a few minor secrets and a theme for her campaign. The
secrets themselves may take it from there.
To allow better understanding, let us assume there are five levels of
secrets.
THE FIRST LEVEL are those that all Nephilim know. They know that they
exist, that magic exists and is real, that secret societies are
plotting to take over the world. These secrets are always present. A
gamemaster should keep them in the back of her mind when plotting any
adventures or campaigns.
THE SECOND LEVEL is secrets that add interest. These are such things
as the location of a hidden nexus, a new secret society plot, or that
the new skyscraper downtown is constructed in a manner which will
affect the local magical fields. Each secret on this level can be the
basis for a single adventure, with a beginning and a resolution.
Behind this secret, though, lurks deeper mysteries.
THE THIRD LEVEL is that of true secrets. These are the secrets of real
Nephilim history, of grand secret society master plans, and of
Nephilim from other lands with other magical systems. These secrets
should be in the background of many level two secrets, allowing the
players to slowly discover and come to terms with the true secret.
Each of these can be a small campaign in itself.
THE FOURTH LEVEL is the realm of deep secrets. These are truths that
undermine the reality of the game world. Is the Golden Path fatally
flawed? Have the Moon Arcana developed a new method for successfully
reaching Agartha? These are secrets that should only come about after
lengthy labor on the part of players. At this point in time, you don't
even need to know what they are. In the future, supplements will
describe some of these secrets, but not before many of the secrets of
the third level are understood.
THE FIFTH AND FINAL LEVEL involves the secrets of existence. What is
the purpose of the increasing awakening of Nephilim at this point in
time? Is the Zero Trump about to alter Nephilim understanding again?
These secrets may rock the foundations of the game, or they may be so
ephemeral and immense that they are almost meaningless to the player
Nephilim.
How to Start
To begin plotting a campaign, choose a level three secret that
interestsyou . The Nephilim Rulebook contains many ideas for these, in
both the Sacred Places sections and the final section on adventure
ideas. Secret Societies also contains many possible level three
secrets.
Given the almost infinite number of possible secrets to choose from
(look at any tabloid newspaper), it is best to narrow the field of
your campaign to one or two central themes. You choose your higher
level secrets so that they all relate to a common area of interest.
For example: the Grand Templar Plan and the machinations of the secret
societies to accomplish it; the upcoming Age of Aquarius and how
various Arcana and secret societies are planning for it; or even
Nephilim in history, discovering what has really occurred and how it
affects both humans and Nephilim.
Now, around your first true secret you can place many level two
secrets. For example, you have chosen the Templar's Grand Plan as your
true level three secret. You must decide what type of actions the
Templars are doing to accomplish this. Are they detonating Nuclear
Weapons? Taking over other small secret societies? Manipulating the
stock market? Each of these lower level secrets should contain some
hint at the higher secret. In the previous case, most of the
adventures should contain some Templar connection. Perhaps they are
the source of money for the plot, or maybe they supplied weapons to
some gang. Eventually, the player Nephilim should be able to discover
that all these interesting level two secrets have a common
denominator: Templar involvement. You may then begin a new phase of
adventures as they begin to work directly against or for the higher
level secret. Perhaps while doing this, they discover the thread of an
even higher secret.
At this point you do not even need to know a higher level secret. It
is often best to first see what is interesting to your players and see
what things they begin to suspect are the deeper secrets. You can use
later material or your own imagination to develop a deeper secret.
Then, as before, the players must peel away the lower level secrets
until they finally uncover the deeper one. This campaign development
strategy enables the gamemaster to keep each adventure distinct, but
at the same time begin creating a background of secrets which the
players can slowly discover over the length of your campaign.
POSSIBLE OUTLINE
It may be useful just to jot down a short outline for yourself when
starting a campaign. Here is one simple example.
Theme: The Templar Grand Plan
*LEVEL 1 SECRETS: Just remember that these affect every adventure.
*LEVEL 2 SECRETS: The Mayor of San Francisco dies mysteriously. A
local military base receives anonymous funding to continue nuclear
weapons research. The Golden Gate bridge is redesigned for better
earthquake survival. New local laws passed benefit certain secret
society interests. A rather unique sculpture is stolen from the
DeYoung Museum. Etc.
*LEVEL 3 SECRET: The Drake Society, a branch of the Templars, is
consolidating its hold on San Francisco in preparation for the
Templar's Grand Plan.
*LEVEL 4 & 5 SECRETS: Don t need to be decided upon for a long while.
TAILORING THE CAMPAIGN TO YOUR PLAYERS
This is probably the most important step of the entire process. If you
skip it, you are not going to create a campaign that is interesting
for your players.
You began tailoring the campaign to your players during character
creation. Here they should be giving away clues as to what interests
them by the past lives and the skills they choose. Given that
knowledge, your first level three true secret should be one that would
interest the players Nephilim. If it does, they are likely to be
interested in the lower level secrets that lead up to it. Nephilim
characters need motivation to want to delve deeper into a secret. Each
adventure that contains a hint to a greater secret builds this
motivation and interest, leading to greater interest for continuing
the campaign in order to discover more of the secrets that have only
been hinted at so far.
Another way to involve the players is to choose small things that
interest the characters, and then weave them into the level three
secret you have selected. One of the players may want to retrieve a
painting that he owned in seventeenth century France, and learn that
it is held by an occultist who is studying the Templars, while another
may seek to learn the true fate of an expedition that led to his death
in the thirteenth century, only to discover that unbeknown to him,
they were seeking the mythical Holy Grail.
Finally, once the campaign is running and your players are starting to
piece together the parts of the first true secret, you can expand your
campaign. New hints from other true level three secrets can appear, as
can hints at whole new themes if you wish. Eventually, all of your
players will be entangled in the unique layers of secrets that make up
the world of the Nephilim.
WHAT SECRETS ARE LEFT?
It is impossible to do more than touch upon the surface of Nephilim
here. Hopefully, this has been sufficient to get you thinking about
how to design your own campaign. As you discover more about the
secrets that enshroud the Nephilim world, you may find the following
additional resources helpful:
Chaosium is continuing to produce a line of supplements for the
Nephilim game. You may obtain their newest catalog by writing to:
Chaosium Inc., 950-A 56th Street, Oakland CA 94608-3129. Or if you
have World Wide Web access, Chaosium's catalog is available online at
http://www.sirius.com/~chaosium/chaosium.html.
The Nephilim Mailing List is an electronic forum dedicated solely to
the Nephilim game. Many Nephilim players and gamemasters, including
authors of most of the Nephilim supplements, use the mailing list to
discuss the numerous mysteries of the Nephilim universe. You may
subscribe to the Nephilim Mailing List by sending the command
"subscribe nephilim-digest" in the body of an internet e-mail message
to majordomo@erzo.org.
--------------------
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