Armageddon - The Reckoning

[Krul]

For centuries, we fought to keep it back, to hold it back, to protect humanity.. and to show them the truth, and for years we succeeded at one, but failed at the other.. at last, our long fight to hold it back has ended, the Reckoning has come, now we fight not to hold it back, but to protect reality itself from the rise of the Mad God, Leviathan, the first of the Invaders.

Now, if perhaps a consolation price, at last, humanity knows more of the truth, even if many can not believe it, the news now reports things that formerly you could only find only within the tabloids..

The Supernatural is real...

Wizards and Witches are among us

Psychics can kill with their very thoughts

Mediums speak with the Dead

Saints and Prophets war with the Rising Darkness

The Dead return for Vengeance

Vampires, Undead, Ghosts and monsters are Real

Judas the Betrayer seeks redemption among them

Angels and Demons fight by our side

The Archangel Michelle has descended to the Earth

The Host of Heaven and the Infernal Legion have joined the battle

The Exiled Watchers, who stood on neither side, have also joined our battle

The Metatron, the Voice of God is missing, and has been missing for 200 centuries

The ancient gods have returned, Pantheons long forgotten are back

Inheritors and Avatars of their power stand with us, Incarnate Gods walk the earth

Odin, Zeus, Isis, Amaterasu, Damballa, Coyote, Pele, Inti and others, to name a few

The Heirs of Atlantis, the true immortals have been reborn among humanity

Ancient arts thought lost once more rise among these ancient souls

The Magic Generation is on the rise, more children have been born with the Gift in the last decades then in the last 40 centuries combined

It is well that this is so, for the ancient Invader, the first and greatest of the mad gods, has returned... Leviathan seeks to break though once more

The Dark Apostle leads the Church of Revelations, and has taken the world by storm, as much of a third of the world is under their control..

Dark powers rise under their dominion, things that should not be, taint and madness are their coin.. but power is given to those who serve

But they are not unopposed, we rise to fight them.

Who are we? We are the Gifted, the Children of the Magic Generation, the Wizards, Psyches, Saints and Mediums, we are the best in humanity, the children of the creator

Who are we? We are Avatars and Inheritors of divine power, the children of the gods, vast powers are ours.

Who are we? We are the Seraphim, the Kerubim, the Nephilium and the Exiles, though men know us as angels and demons, the Holy and the Damned.

Who are we? We are the Undead, the Vampyres and Restless Dead, life, death and vengeance are many of our goals

Who are we? We are the Bast, and the Ferals, cats who can work Magic, or take human form and Humans who can become Lions, Tigers and Bears.. not to mention Wolves and others.

Who are we? We are the Phantasms and Ghosts, Spirits of the Dead who walk the earth

Who are we? We are the Alliance, our leaders stand as the Archangel Michelle, the Phantasm Benjamin Franklin, and the leader of the Aesir, the God Odin.. and we fight the forces of Levathon across the World..

The year is 2027, The World is at War, Magic is on the Rise, All Myths and Legends are Truth, Everything You Know is Wrong, Nothing will ever be the same..

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Sense I don't seem to have enough Noblilis players, I'm thinking of doing something very different, a sort of action/war game battle for the future of earth and the souls of humanity...

If I get enough players who are interested, I'm using a slightly altered version of Eden Studio's Armageddon game line, at the very least I'm jumping the timeline ahead by 10 years, from the main game, however, this takes place in the future CJ Carrellas Witchcraft setting, and that book can be had for free on DriveThruRPG Here: http://rpg.drivethru...WitchCraft?it=1

I have all of the other books in both game lines, but the AG line is a lot more of an action game then WC horror mystery aspects.

Taking a page from both Long and Carver, this game is going to be a bit more lethal then my past games, if your PC dies in the game, your most likely going to have to make a new one though I'll allow experance to cross over.

Character creation is not going to be standard at all, if I get enough folks who want to play (at least four - five or more to be prefered), I'll post character generation... but I'm not going to do that unless I get enough players.. same for some measure of the history of this world.

[Krul]

Further Information, for interested parties..

- Game Style: Think Alien Invaders (But Extra Dimensional Beings with a Cthulhu Flavor instead of Aliens) vs. a Mystical Based Justice League or Avengers (Supported by Angels and Gods, but in many ways almost outmatched by the enemy), in a World War to make World War II look tame This is a fight that will not just take place on earth, but across the various layers of reality as well.

One Note

- In this game, no faith has a monopoly on truth, all of them have correct and incorrect aspects, the monotheistic religions tend to be more correct in regards to the source of creation.. there was a single Creator, however, a number of beings called the Sephyr were the tools of Divine Creation, sense these beings eventually became the Titans (and eventually, the gods) and Seraphim, it is just as accurate to say that gods created everything as is is to say god created everything. To the Sephyr time was immaterial, so it also took billions of years, so evolutionary theory is also correct... furthermore, the destiny of the soul can be any number of places, Kether is believed to be the highest destiny of the human soul, and only human souls can go there..

[Excerpt from the Armageddon Book]

Humankind Rising

Humans are the ultimate prize and the ultimate hope of the world of Armageddon. Born with incredible potential, humans can evolve into beings of godlike power. As a species, however, humankind remains in its infancy, often using its powers without the benefit of wisdom. Creative, adaptable and resourceful, humans are masters of technology and the crafts. Those who have learned to perceive the invisible worlds of magic and the occult are often more accomplished than most supernatural beings. Although not as physically powerful and long lived as angels or demigods, humans with the right magical or technological tools can be the match of those beings.

The Seraphim know the Creator’s plans for humankind. Humans are the Children of God, and heirs apparent to all of Creation. This does

not mean that they “own” the Universe—that the concept of ownership still exists among humans shows that they are not ready to assume

their inheritance. By the time humans evolve into readiness, untold years or millennia in the future, they may become something completely

different, able to combine the physical sciences and the metaphysical arts in forms unimaginable today. Destroying humankind would be akin to

murdering a baby in the cradle, long before adulthood is reached. But, unlike a baby, humans can defend themselves from both angel

and pagan god. Even though the ultimate merger of spirit and technology is far from reality, humans can use both the tools of science and

powers of the occult to fight their enemies.

Once before, humans grew in power until they rivaled the angels and gods. Their impatience and ruthlessness led them to open warfare and

untold destruction. Eventually, one group on the losing side of the conflict consorted with dark forces more dangerous and evil than they could imagine. As a result, the Seraphim destroyed the Elder Kingdoms and sent humans into a dark age that took ten thousand years to overcome. Now, the same dark force ultimately ultimately responsible for the destruction of Atlantis and the fall of Ultima Thule has risen again, and threatens all of Creation. Humans will be the deciding factor in this conflict; should they choose wrongly, the best efforts of the Seraphim

or the Old Gods will not be enough to stop the arrival of Leviathan.

Essence and the Human Soul

Essence is the main building block of reality. It is a force and an element, a source of power and the foundation of all matter and spirit. It is the Chi, Baraka, and Mana described by most cultures and legends. In its purest form, it can be found in currents floating through the world, or swirling around places and people of power. It ebbs and flows like the tides, strongest at certain, specific times. Those who can sense and manipulate Essence can create and destroy with the force of their wills. Magic, psychic powers, and all the supernatural abilities of myth and legend ultimately depend on Essence to work.

Essence is also the stuff of souls. Each human has a soul, an Essence matrix as unique in each individual as one’s genetic pattern. This Essence pattern is almost indestructible and, unless unraveled through malice or misfortune, it is eternal and immortal. The basest human soul has a good chance of outliving the most powerful archangel, and a better chance of surviving an attack. Immortal as they are, however, human souls can be enslaved, twisted, and tortured by those who know the right secrets.

The strength of a human being’s soul is reflected by her Essence capacity. Magicians and other Gifted humans possess very powerful souls,

representing their more advanced state. Unfortunately, the advancement or raw power of a human soul has nothing to do with the morals

and disposition of the person. Free will is as much a gift as a curse, and those who wield great power are at constant risk of being corrupted by

its use.

By learning to project the power of their souls, and combining it with the power that flows freely through the world, magicians, psychics,

and saints can manipulate the world with their minds and will alone.

Reincarnation and Life After Death

Since souls are eternal, death is not an end to existence. The spirits of the dead, once released from their mortal shells, have a number of

choices. They can be reborn in a new body, adding each new lifetime’s experience to the soul, becoming stronger and more experienced with

each new existence. They can enter a higher realm of existence, a place where even the Seraphim and Old Gods cannot follow. Finally, they can wander in the Death Realms, shadowy dimensions where the Death Gods and Fallen Seraphim often prey on the souls of the wicked and the weak.

Reincarnation is a major element in Armageddon games. While reincarnated souls rarely retain any conscious memories of their past

lives, these memories, and the feelings and instincts attached to them, can be reawakened. People who were linked in a previous life very

often encounter each other in the next, perhaps in different roles, and always reflecting the consequences of previous interactions. A

formerly betrayed lover could return in the next life as an implacable enemy, with neither participant truly knowing why they feel hatred

for each other. Immortal or long-lived beings are often haunted by new reincarnations of those they wronged in ages past.

[End of Excerpt]

[some Soul Destinations: Kether (the higher realm of existance closed to Seraphim and Old Gods - non return from Kether, as far as anyone knows) || Lingering as a Ghost or Phantasm || The various death realms - Gehenna, Valhalla, Khem, Hel, etc. || The Garden of Earthly Delights in the Sephiroth of Dreams - Hod || Reincarnation in another life || Becoming a Kerubim or, in the case of some Enlightened Human souls, a Bodhisattva || Rising as Undead (either because of refusal to face death in the case of the Vampyre, or for vengence in the case of the Restless Dead)

[new Excerpt]

Essence and Immortality

Many cultures, from the Gnostic heretics of early Christianity to the Taoists of China, hold beliefs about Immortals—enlightened humans who have transcended the boundaries of Life and Death, and who are no longer subject to the ravages of age. Some of these “immortals” are supernatural creatures, like the Incarnates or the True Immortals, whose lifespans greatly exceed those of humans. Other Undying Ones are Gifted humans whose power and wisdom have defeated the aging process. Those who know the occult truths of the world refer to them as “Lesser” or “Common” Immortals.

Any Gifted character whose Essence Pool grows beyond certain limits ages more slowly. Characters with over 75 points in their Essence

Pool age at a rate one-third as fast as normal people. Such a character would only age the equivalent of ten years over a period of three

decades. Many Gifted reach their sixties and seventies while still appearing to be in their late thirties or early forties—enough to be the envy of

their contemporaries but not unprecedented in modern times, where plastic surgery and “clean living” can hide the effects of age. Gifted

characters with over 100 points of Essence age at one-fifth the normal rate. These men and women can be over a hundred years old, but still

appear to be fairly young. Such characters need to cover their tracks after a certain point, or their continued good health and youth becomes

suspicious to those around them. After exceeding 125 points of Essence, the aging process slows to one-tenth the normal rate, resulting in people living for over two centuries without appearing to be much older than forty years old. Upon reaching 150 Essence Points, the aging process nearly stops, and the character ages at one-twentieth the normal rate. At 200 Essence and beyond, aging is reduced to one

fiftieth of its normal rate.

Regardless of how much Essence the character had during her childhood, the slowdown in the aging process does not “kick in” until the person

reaches full adulthood—roughly the mid- to late twenties. Essence does not stop growth, but only the decay caused by age. Also, the slowed aging does not begin until the character accumulates the requisite Essence. For example, a character who reached 75 points of Essence at age forty would start aging at one-third the normal rate from that point on; at age seventy she would look like she was fifty years old.

How the Essence is accumulated is usually not relevant. Magicians, Necromancers, and practitioners of any of the Gifted Arts can increase their Essence Pool through experience. By focusing and refining their Powers, the characters strengthen their souls and begin to transcend the limits of age.

[end of Excerpt]

Some notes regarding the Church of Revelations

- The Mark: The Mark of Leviathan appears on all True Believers. It is a circle with two curved spikes, black or dark red in color, that seems to be a tattoo on the forehead or hand of the Believer. It is not a normal tattoo, however. Before the war, some youths started imitating the Mark with tattoos of their own (the fad vanished soon after, and a lot of people underwent the expensive and painful process of having the tattoos removed or covered; those who did not often died in impromptu lynchings). Unlike those tattoos, the true Mark has a psychic as well as physical presence. It acts as a conduit between Leviathan’s reality and our own, and is used as a means of communication between Believers. Supernatural beings who become servants of the Leviathon also gain some powers from these marks.

- Taint: Anti-Essence, antithesis of this reality, the energy of the invaders from outside our reality, the Mad Gods, it twists and drives those warped by it mad, which is where the name was derived.. for some reason, apparently tied to the Mark, the Adepts of the Church of Revelations can remain sane even though their essence is transformed to this power... though they generally have physical deformities as marks of the twisted energy they now embrace.

...

CoR - Church of Revelations, aka the Cult of Leviathan

• Leviathan - The Mad God - Unfortunately, Leviathan is real and has enough of a presence in this reality to actually answer prayers and grant powers to those who serve it.. a human soul innately knows that it's wrong to do so, that the Levathon is something twisted and alien to our existence, and fortunately it has limited presence outside of areas it's worshipers control.
  
• Primary Nations: Argentina, Germany, Turkey and Vietnam are the nations who have declared for the CoR (generally because large numbers of their leaders and people are corrupted by the power of Leviathan,
  
• Belief: Any nations controlled by the CoR is bound by a Theocracy, and the worst sort of one at that, worship of any deity besides Leviathan is punishable by death, imprisonment or worse... worship of Leviathan is encouraged, but not generally required (but more and more freedoms are granted to those who attend services in the church and even more to those who convert) at first, eventually however, more and more pressure is put upon people to convert, and persons freedoms are directed by their relation to Leviathan.
  
• Primary Leader of the Church: Johann Goering, Supreme Leader of Germany, Supreme Commander of the Armies of Revelation, Apostle of the Church of Revelations || Aka: The Dark Apostle, the Antichrist (by those who oppose him), possesses incredible supernatural power, has slain hordes of seraphim, lesser deities and other supernatural beings, seems to possess the power to match metaphysical power of supernatural beings who attempt to oppose him directly with greater power from the Mad God Levathon, which has Archangels and Greater Deities reluctant to directly oppose him and increase his power still further, allowing more of Levathon's power into this world. In essence, Occultists are not sure of exactly what or who Goering is. An orphan, raised first by a normal family and then by the Cult of Leviathan, he is clearly more than human.
  
• Major Allies: Adepts - Granted power by Leviathan, their essence is transformed into taint and though various stages they are slowly transformed into inhuman channels of the Leviathan's power. What is worse, not all of these beings began as human, the titans (gods) and seraphim (angels & demons) can also be corrupted and changed, what is more, they keep their powers and gain the additional powers granted to each level of Adept... fortunately, it is harder to change a supernatural being into an Adept then is to turn a human, so it is rarely done. In ancient Ultima Thule, there were six levels of Adepts.. it appears in this age, there are even more, the Lady of Jade, El General, and the Dark Iman appear to be eighth or ninth circle adepts, leading the various Armies of Revelations in different parts of the world. || Sheol: The restless souls of wicked humans who agreed to serve the Mad God, they returned to life as Undead, mummy like creatures with a number of supernatural traits - NOTE: The Restless Dead, the supernatural but untainted version of these beings also walk the world as Undead, they are generally rarer, but more powerful then the average Sheol || The Arisen: Adepts have the power to raise the dead as Zombie like undead, and send them forward as hords || Shaitan - These taint spirits are quite dangerous in close combat, but fair poorly against advanced weaponry, they are useful as shock troops, sense they can be endlessly summoned and sent into battle, but have bounced against the more technologically advanced nations.
  
  - World Status:

  • Europe: Mostly controlled by the Enemy, Scandinavia & British Isles remain free and heavy resistance remains throughout the conquered european nations, when the CoR invaded Italy, thousands of Seraphim were sent to Earth by the Archangel Uriel, only be be destroyed, and the Dark Apostle personally exicuted the Pope with a gun on live TV to the horror of those watching... russia also under attack, continually forced back, but parts of the nation remain free... On the mystical front, the Aesir have sunk the fleets that attempted to attack the northern european nations, greece is a major battleground, for the Olympian Gods have returned in force to fight the forces of Levathon there.
    
  • North America: Everything south of US border under CoR control, except for the islands of the Gulf.. heavy reisistance thoughout central america continues throughout all of the conquered areas, Mexico is a battleground, where US and CoR forces clash almost daily, as the US and Canada fight to push the enemy back.
    
  • South America: Brazil is just about the only nation to remain mostly free, and in part this is due to supernatural forces in the Amazon and Pervuvian mountains who have risen to appose them, Argentina, however is one of the four major nations of the CoR and a major source of it's armies in this region.
    
  • Asia: China and India are besieged, as much as a 3rd of both countries are under CoR control, however, their resistance is heavy and the CoR loses areas as often as they gain them.. furthermore, Japan and the various isles of the pacific, as well as Australia remain free. On the mystical level, many secret societies in this part of the world had a supernatural aspect, three that have risen to the occasion, are the Storm Dragons, the One-Thousand Immortals (lead by the chinese deity, Lei Gong, god of Thunder and Retribution), and the Society of the Harmonious Pattern.. additionally, the greater gods of the Celestial Bureaucracy have been reported as active in the area, Sun Wukong, Xuan Wu, Guan Yin (the goddess of Mercy though heals and rescues, without fighting) have all been active in China, and the various Indian deities also have been active. Japan is once more the land of the Rising Sun, for an Avatar of Amaterasu sits on the emperors throne directly, and she is an Empress for the first time in thousands of years, Susano-O and Ryugin sink any ships of the CoR navy that come close to the land of the Rising Sun, and they once more are building a military, with US support.
    
  • Middle East: Were as the east seems to be a very large concentration of secret societies and deities, the middle east has been dominated by the various monotheistic religions.. however, with the assaults from the CoR nationTurkey, Christians, Muslims and Jews have been forced to band together to halt the advances of the dark church at the border of Saudi.. and close to 20,000 seraphim have been sent from Elysium with orders to coordinate with and obey orders from human generals, but their willingness to defend people of all three faiths have caused a degree of religious crises in the region as well.
    
  • Africa: This land is not under as much direct attack as the other lands, the CoR has concentrated their forces on the first world primarily, leaving this continent the least affected by the war. Parts of the north have the same issues as the middle east, but once one enters the jungles matters grow more complicated.. and South Africa is one of the worlds free nations.
    
  • Antarctica... as of yet, no major powers is paying much attention to it.
    
  • Other Dimensions: A number of the other Sephiroth's are under assault in their own way, but these places have a greater
    

  Note: The Magic Generation: Before the rise of the Magic Generation in previous centuries, only about 0.01% or 1 human in 10,000 had the gift, though sometimes that number slipped up a bit with the each century's reckoning.. with the rise of the magic generation, it's sliped more to about 1 in 100.. or about 1% of the human populace, a large number of these because of exposure to the rising mystical activities in the world.. this means in the last two decades. the number of gifted rose from about 700,000 to about 70,000,000...an astronomical increase.. the majority however, are still learning and only have a few capabilities so far.. some however, seem to have incredible talent and power in certain areas, and have been taken in by the Alliance for intense training, which is wear you folks come into the picture.

  To Come, if I get more Interest: Michele's Citadel of War.. the heart of the Alliance's War Effort

[Krul]

Races

Human, Mundane (Not Available as PC race): The general human, without metaphysical power,

Human, Gifted: Human's who have awakened the true potential of thier souls, now able to shape essence in various different ways.. without essence channeling they need ritual to unleash it though.. the most powerful gifted rival the power of divine beings.

Human, Enlightened: These reborn humans remember their previous lives and possess much greater power, able to use their channel their essence freely without limit, and are more talented then the average gifted.. they are a bit more

Human, Feral: Source of the legends of werewolves and other shapechangers, they are born with or cursed to be entangled with an animal spirit of sorts, Bears, Coyotes, Hyena's, Jaguars, Lions, Tigers, and Wolves are the only types of creatures these humans become, though there are other kinds of shapechangers, they are generally not human.

Human, True Immortal: The Heirs to Atlantis, these humans possess unusual powers, possess ancestral memories of the ancient Atlantis, and are very hard to kill, they do not age, do not need to eat, breath or sleep to survive, and can only be killed with massive amounts of damage or dismemberment, though there is a mystical way to kill them using, they use different sorts of mystical powers then most humans do.. formerly there were perhaps a thousand of them in the world.. today, with the rise of the magic generation, the number is at least a million. As ancient enemies of Ultima Thule, the CoR has only one answer to them, others may be allowed to convert, the heirs of Atlantis are simply killed when they can be..

Part-Human

Inheritor: with the coming reckoning and hints that this one was going to be a big one, many deities chose to engender children among humans, so children were born with one human parent, one divine parent.. the number of Inheritors in the world however, is astronomically higher then it should have been, even if every deity had children among humanity, which they didn't.. for some reason, with the rise of the magic generation strangely enough, some humans who have distant ancestors among the divine, even if those ancestors were only Avatars, have somehow been born with divine powers, with generations between them.. this has never happened before, it seems that some portion of the soul of humanity reaches out to claim the power of the divine as it's own.. what may yet come of it in the future?

Avatar: Many of the gods sensed the coming reckoning, some after all, have a sense of prophesy, or even consult the Fates on occasion, though they had no idea of the details, and as such many of them visited unborn children and forged a link between themselves and the formerly mortal child, allowing the deity to see though their eyes and the human access to divine power, as well as a natural lifespan of several hundred years.. their parents are human, but they have a divine parent of sorts meshed with their own soul, in the ancient days, some of the legends of the gods were actually legends of an Avatar of the gods, for the closeness gives them similarities to their divine parent

Nephilim: children of humans and seraphim, both angels and demons, the nephilim have great, even superhuman physical power, but can not tap metaphysical power.. in exchange, they are immune to the direct influence of such powers, you must fight them on a physical level, or not at all.. they are immortal, they regenerate damage with incredible speed.. in the past, they were rare, today, much like inheritors, some of the magic generation with distant ancestors among the seraphim have called this aspect to themselves.

Human Spirits

The souls of humans can linger on in various ways.. the most common, Ghosts, those who have them can use gifted powers in the rare locations that they can actually take physical form, but they also have other powers unique to them, the vast majority of ghosts are mundane souls who have chosen to linger... they are not available as a PC race... they are important however, as Necromancers often interact with them and possess a number of powers related to such interactions

Phantasms: These incredible powerful ghosts are more then ordinary, possessing the ability to incarnate in the world with an actual physical form, they are often Gifted in life, though not always, and they are stronger willed then most other souls. They can learn a number of gifted powers, most ghostly powers and some unique phantasm only powers, they are quite powerful among human spirits.

Kerubim: Some human souls upon death, rather then entering Kether, enter the realm of Elysium, that of the Heavenly Host, and become something different, the soul of a human imbued with the power of an angel, a being as much physical as spirit... when a child says 'mommy watches over her from heaven' she may be speaking of the Kerubim. Unlike other spirits, however, a Kerubim can easily take on human form indefinitely, they can control chance and providence, when someone survives an impossible accident, it is possible one of the Kerubim was watching over them... their attributes are supernatural and they possess unique powers with similarity only to the Seraphim.

NOTES: Qliphonim are their damned counterparts, souls gifted with power by Lucifer and sent into the world to serve the purposes of the Infernal Legion.. however, some of them are rebels for one reason or another, and worse, some have joined the Levathon. || Bodhisattva's are very rare kind of Kerubim who are not bound to the realm of Elysium, instead they are enlightened human souls linked to the realm of Shambala within the realm of Hod, they are never violent, and they possesses some abilities unique to themselves..

Non Humans

Bast: The Spirit cats are perhaps one of the crowning achievements of humanity, created either in ancient egypt.. or perhaps before, they have been worshiped and hunted over ages, but their souls and all of their memories reincarnate, and a new kitten is born who remembers everyone when he or she becomes fully grown.. some of them can take human form for a time, they can learn the powers of Magic, the Sight and Necromancy.. but the Invocations of magic come to them most naturally.

Seraphim, Greater, Common, Lesser: Evolved from the ancient Sephyr, gaining free will as they became more and more like humanity, they were for a time used as the Creator's direct representatives within creation, but directions from the Creator grew less and less until the vanishing of the Metatron, the voice of god, before the Deluge, and the War in heaven that ended with Lucifer and his supporters being cast down from Elysium into Abaddon. Seraphim have superhuman attributes and metaphysical capabilities, the ability to control providence, to unleash Celestial Fire (or Hellfires) as blasts or as a blade, and unique powers of their own they call Theophanies.

Seraphim, Exiles: Some Seraphim have chosen to exile themselves to earth, in most cases stripping themselves of most of their metaphysical powers, though they continue to be able to heal themselves with essence, they are difficult to kill, and retain their supernatural attributes, so on the level of raw physicality they can be powerful. Most of them form the third group of angels, the earthbound group called 'The Watchers' and many Nephilim are their children.. for one of the more common reason a Seraphim becomes an exile is love, either for a specific human, or for humanity in general.

Incarnates: Lesser Deities, they are children of the gods on both sides, having little of humanity at all, and unlike their more powerful elders, no legends of them exist.. not yet at least, either because they didn't act in the mortal world, or because they have only been born in the last few centuries.

[Krul]

The Citadel of War

• Unlike Lucifer and his group, who Michele/Mikeal was personally involved in defeating, and were mostly imprisoned.. or, Shemizael and Prometheus' Watchers who were hunted down, forced to yield or hide upon the earth, Michelle and her choir of Seraphim and Kerubim chose to leave Elysium. Michele discovered that Gabriel had been one of the driving forces behind the Combine, the agency that had sought to supress human development, and angry over the injustice, she brought it to the High Council, Rapheal agreed with her, but was not willing to break with Gabriel or Uriel over the matter..
  
• As the Archangel of War and Justice, Michelle had a degree of tatical sense that few others within the ranks of even Archangels possessed and her entire choir left enmass.. but Archangels bound to Elysium possess enormous reserves of essence, hundreds of thousands, though decending to earth leaves them but thousands of essence where they had hundreds of thousands.. Michele sacrificed as much as a third of her essence to create 'The Hall of War and Honor' as an extra dimension space within the Threshold (a spiritual domain connected to Earth/Malkuth that is the link between Malkuth and Geborah, the realm of the dead.. stretching in three dimensions, 100 kilometers high, 250 kilometers long and 250 kilometers wide, it possesses a number of unque capabilities, including anchoring unexiled Seraphim and Kerubim that chose to follow her, out of loyalty, love and faith that Michele knew what she was doing, and many of them were as angry at what Gabriel had been up too as she was. As many as a 10% of her seraphim were able to join her without becoming exiles, as Michele shifted their link between Elysium to the Citadel. The rest had to chose to exile themselves, and the majority did.
  
• It became the Citadel of War some time after the rise of the Church of Revelations, as Michele began to gather others into what was to become the center of the Alliance's war effort, and as Odin joined, it was linked to both Valhalla and Asgard, and then with the addition of Benjamin Franklin to the alliance leadership, a connection with the Twilight Realm was established.. and the titan Morpheus, persuaded by Odin and Michele, opened a connection to the Dream Realm of Hod from here, but most importantly, for the magic generation, in the last year, Michelle sacrificed still more essence to change the time differential, a day passes within for each hour that passes outside of the Citadel, allowing swift reaction to new threats... and to give someone a decade of combat training within a period of six months.. which was the primary purpose for her to do this.
  
• with 250 square kilometers to work with and several decades to build, the center of this sanctuary is the citadel itself, but there are plenty of other areas, an armory, a grand cathedral, a place of meditation, gardens, the homes of the various seraphim and kerubim bound here, the well guarded gateways to earth and other dimensions, training grounds, etc.
  

[Krul]

Character Creation

Superior Gifted

All Gifted Humans, Enlightened, True Immortal or Phantasm use this point breakdown... the Bast are the only non-human race to use this point breakdown.

Attributes: 20

Qualities: 20 (May take up to 15 points in Drawbacks) - All Humans and Bast Get the Gift Quality for free

Skills: 30

Metaphysics: 50

Supernatural

Supernatural - All Part Human or Non-Human races, with exception of Bast use this particular point breakdown

Attributes: 30

Qualities: 20 (and up to 15 points in Drawbacks)

Skills: 35 + Bonuses

Metaphysics: 30

Skills Note: Add 3 x Intelligence to Skill points - Also add highest of resources or status to skill points.

Race Note: Other then Human and Bast, all races have a cost that must be taken from Qualities and/or Metaphysics

Citadel Training

Note: The following points are added due to a decade of training in the Citadel of War, during which you drank and ate Ambrosia every six months (an special True Immortal alchemy creation that compeltely freezes aging for a period of six months, but grows less effective after a few decades) - this is optional if you don't it, you don't have to take it, because if it doesn't fit your character concept, we can work something out. Sense the Citadel is out of phase with regular time (1 day outside equals 24 days inside the citadel), someone who trained there can be as much as a decade or older then they appear or legally are... more in time, but the time differential is a new wrinkle, something Michelle added only recently.

Training Points: 30 (May only be used to increase capabilities already purchased, not to purchase new ones)

Skill Training: 10 (May only be used to increase or learn combat related skills)

Sample Human Character

Notes And Advice: Generally it's good to specialize or focus on a specific type of metaphysics or group of powers, but there are different ways to specialize, the following character specializes by focusing on a specific area rather then a specific kind of metaphysics.

Name: Fiona Allison McCormick

Role: Warrior

Concept: Fire Witch

Affiliation: Alliance, Templars

Special Training: Templar - Access to Keys of Solomon, +1 to two physical attributes after everything else is added in

Attributes: 20 + 7 from Drawbacks

Notes & Advice: the average attribute for humans is 2, the general maximum is 5, but some humans push to the upper limit of human attributes, giving them a 6, the highest attribute possible for a human.. without metaphysical enhancement. it's usually a good idea to be at least average in all attributes, but there are different ways to become so. On a further note, in play a human can increase an attribute by +1 with experance, but no more then that, most supernaturals, including part human ones, are not so limited.. so make sure your happy with your attributes if your pure human. I decide I want a really high mental traits, but also want increadible dexterity and good stamina.. however, with only 20 points, I need to figure out the best way to do that, so I end up spending a about 7 drawback points to raise attributes higher, and I note that 2 affiliations give you attribute bonuses.. the Storm Dragons and the Templars.. I could make her a Storm Dragon, but I don't want martial art's related powers, so I turn to the Templars, and end up with 6 and 4 for dex and con, which is awesome.

SPECIAL NOTE: Raising an attribute over 5 costs 3 attribute points, or 6 drawback points, though special training can bypass that... also, any attribute over 6 is Superhuman... further NOTE: True Immortals and the various Non-human races can actually spend metaphysics points to increase attributes, if they wish too.. (except for Bast.. but they are often an exception to the rules, what do you expect from a Cat )

Strength: 1 (+ 2 from Drawbacks to raise to 2) = 2

Dexterity: 5 (+1 from Templar Training) = 6

Constitution: 1 (+ 2 from Drawbacks to Raise to 2, + 3 from Drawbacks to Raise to 3) = 3 (+ 1 from Templar Training) = 4

Intelligence: 5

Perception: 3

Willpower: 5

Attribute Breakdown: Average in Strength, Supreme Human Limit in Dexterity, Well Above Average in Constitution, General Human Limit in Intellect, Above Average Perceptiveness, General Human Limit in Willpower. She's a bit lacking in strength, but for what I have in mind for her, that's ok, her agility will carry the day in combat.. if she closes to hand to hand, the templar special training seriously enhanced her physically, should her player later decide to increase her attributes with experance, her Dexterity is already maxed for humans, so it can't be increased, but everything else can be raised by 1.

Derived Attributes:

Notes & Advice: Derived Attributes - there is a formula for most derived attributes based on race, humans generally are the lowest here, but essence is very easy to increase, and there are many things which need to be taken into account with essence, also, unlike the others, essence has no upper limit, a human could end up with thousands of essence, after enough time.

Life Points: [(Strength + Constitution)x4 + 10 + (Levels of Hard to Kill x 3)] = 40

Endurance Points: [(Strength + Constitution + Willpower) x 3 + 5] = 38

Speed: [(Dexterity + Constitution) x 2 miles per hour || (Dexterity + Constitution) Yards per Second] = 20 mph // 10 yps

Essence: [sum of Attributes + other modifiers] = 25 (+ 15 from Qualities) + (+15 from Mindfire) + (+20 from metaphysics) = 75

Notes & Advice: Qualities - Sense there are no mundane characters in this game, pure humans get the gift for free.. now, Fiona is a warrior role, so I decide focus on combat capabilities, but sense Essence Channeling can be purchased with Quality or Metaphysics points, I decided to grab it now, so I can focus her Metaphysics points in the areas I want most for her. Also, Essence Channeling is a good idea for any human character, normal humans regenerate essence slowly, being only willpower per hour, those with essence channeling regenerate it fast, essence channeling rating per minute.

On to other things, Fast Reflexes means she acts first in combat situations, except with other folks who have fast reflexes, hard to kill gives her a few more life points and gives her a bonus on survival tests, nerves of steel makes her almost fearless and in those shocking situations that do have a chance to make her feel fear, she adds +4 to the test.. and while her perception is above average, I decide I want her to be combat focus in terms of perception, Situational Awareness grants her a + 2 to detect trouble or danger in her surrounds or in opposed tests against others stealth. Going back, I decide to make her very attractive, just because that fits my image of her, but it also means she gets a bonus in seduction or other situations where she can use her appearance to her advantage.

After a further moment of thought, I also decide to add 15 essence here, I could wait until I get to metaphysics, but I want her to have a high essence pool, and I'd like to concentrate on powers in metaphysics, so I take 3 extra points from drawbacks and turn them into essence giving her an essence pool of 40, and I've spent a total of 26 points here.. so I have 6 points I take out of drawbacks for it.

Qualities: 20 + 6 from Drawbacks = 26

The Gift (Free), Essence Channeling: 5 (10), Attractiveness + 4 (4), Fast Reflexes (2), Hard to Kill: 2 (2), Nerves of Steel(3), Situational Awareness (2), + 15 to Essence Pool (3)

Notes & Advice: One doesn't have to take drawbacks at all, but it's a good way to flesh out personality traits and gain a few points in the process, in this case, I have no choice, I have already spent at least 13 points, so I need to pick up at least that many points.. Enemy (CoR) is easy, allowed and makes sense.. so I'll take that, of course, Fiona is young, so she's simply on their enemy list, not terminate with extreme prejudice list, so it adds only 5 points.. which is the maximum I'll allowing for Adversaries at this point. I also decide she has a strong code of honor, but has a merciless streak mixed in.. so cruel - level 1, and code of honor - level 2 are dropped in, and the code of honor does keep her cruel merciless streak from taking her too far. Thinking it over, I decide she has a weakness for attractive people and likes sex, she fights hard but also parties hard.. Lecherous level 1 covers that, and means she has a hard time resisting advances from attractive people.. her code of honor however, means if she's in any relationship she's faithful to her partners in the relationship... that's 9 points, but I need at least 4 more.. looking it over, I decide she has a important obligation to the alliance, requiring that she routinely risk herself for them.. that's worth 1 more point, I considered higher, but I wanted her to have a life outside of her missions. Each level of resources below the average gives 2 points, but i don't want her poor or destitute, so I settle for just below average, giving her 2 more points. now, I need 1 to 3 points more.. making her a minority would give 1 point, so I consider the matter, and decide she's openly bisexual.. which can produce some problems in certain circumstances, especially in religious communities - if it was a private matter, it would be a secret rather then minority. Now, I've covered the points spent up to now, and I can still take up 2 more points.. I decide she has a thirst for power and knowledge... so I give her an obession along those lines, taking it beyond just a thirst to a raging need... there might be a reason behind that, but that's for her back story.

Drawbacks: Up to 15 points

Adversary (CoR) (-5), Cruel - Level One (-1), Code of Honor - Level Two (-2), Lecherous - Level One (-1), Obligation (Alliance) - Important (-1), Resources - Below Average (-2), Minority - Openly Bisexual (-1), Obsession (Power and Knowledge) (-2)

Notes & Advice: Fiona's exceptionally high intelligence gives her a major boost to her skill points, and she gets her native language for free, some skills however, like Martial Arts or Acrobatics costs double.. however, I decide that I want her to be really good at both. If she had increased Status or Resources, she'd have even higher amounts of skill points, but having reduced resources doesn't do anything. I decide to use skills to increase her capabilities and cover some of her weakness.. but a few of her skills should reflex other interests, so I pick up seduction, dance, and some fast talking to round her out a bit. Normally, it's advisable to take dodge, but Acrobatics is allowed to double as double, part of the reason it's a double cost skill.. and having martial arts means that she uses it to calculate damage rather then strength.. with a notice of 4, a perception of 3, and the + 2 from situational awareness, I can be sure she's not going to be ambushed, surprised or caught unaware very easily, sense the basic target for a task is 9.. the occult knowledge and magical theory are other ways of rounding her out, sense she should have a knowledge of both from what I intend to do in metaphysics... but her seduction and fast talk skills means she's socially capable too, but she doesn't have any ranged capabilities, however, I intend to cover that in the next area. NOTE: Raising skills above five costs triple

Skills: 30 + 15 From Intelligence

Language: English: Native

Acrobatics(S): 5 (10)

Dance: 3 (3)

Martial Arts (S): 5 (Kicks + 2) (8 + 3 Citadel Training)

Magical Bolt: 7 (4 + 7 Citadel Training)

Magical Theory: 2 (2)

Notice: 4 (4)

Occult Knowledge(S): 2 (4)

Ritual Magic: 2 (2)

Smooth Talking: 2(2)

Seduction: 4(4)

Stealth: 2 (2)

Notes & Advice: Metaphysics - Alright, now we get to the supernatural bits and pieces, Fiona is a fiery, red-headed, strong willed woman with an irish background, and from the beginning I was thinking fire in terms of her specialty.. so I decide to go with Seer powers first, and pick up mindfire, more commonly known as pyrokinesis.. strength for seer powers is 3 points per level, and Art or control is 2 points per level (up to 5) also, seer powers can be used up to strength level without using essence at all, so I have a power that is easy for her to use and dangerous right off the bat.. I could concentrate all of my points on that, but I want her to be more then a 1 trick pony.. still, I hang with the fire theme for a bit.. picking up the Elemental Key of Fire, a special metaphysical power only available to those with Templar affiliation that makes her more effective at summoning and controlling fire elements and reduces fire damage by 1/2... then I chose to pick up some Magic, grabbing the Elemental Fire Invocation, and Spirit Mastery (Fire Elementals), allowing her summon, control, banish and negotiate contracts with elemental fire spirits.. then I decide that the soulfire invocation and it's greater invocation counterpart are in order.. now, rounding things out, I decide to grab the elemental air invocation, being able to purify air and throw lightning bolts around also could be useful.. some healing and defense are in order next, so I grab the lesser healing invocation, the shielding and warding invocations.. I do note that if she didn't have essence channeling, the slow release of essence of ritual magic would be the only way she could use her invocations.

Seer Powers and Invocations are also two sorts of metaphysics that can be more powerful when working with others who have the same powers, so she can be a useful person to know.. the best term for her at this point, likely sorceress, or flame witch. It should also be noted, that each level of strength and art in any Seer Power adds +1 to essence pool.. so her present essence is 50, but I have 1 point left from drawbacks, so I decide to add 5 more essence.. if I could find 20 more, it would slow the speed of her aging, but I don't have the points here to do that and everything else I want her able to do.

Metaphysics: 50 + 2 from Drawbacks

Pyrokinesis (Mindfire: Strength 10, Art 5) (25 points + 15 Citadel Training)

Elemental Key of Fire (6 Points)

Elemental Fire Invocation: 4 (4 points + 4 Citadel Training)

Spirit Mastery (Fire Elementals): 4 (4 points + 4 Citadel Training)

Soulfire Invocation: 1 (2 points)

Greater Soulfire Invocation: 1 (2 points)

Elemental Air Invocation: 1 (2 points)

Lesser Healing Invocation: 1 (2 points)

Shielding Invocation: 3 (2 points + 4 Citadel Training)

Warding Invocation: 1 (2 points)

+ 20 essence (1 point + 3 Citadel Training)

Citadel Training

Notes & Advice: Now comes the interesting stuff, I'm limited only to improving stuff, and decide to focus entirely on metaphysics, I could have improved attributes or qualities instead, but I find metaphysics more satisfying at this point, so right off the bat I decide to increase mindfire by 5, for 15 points.. which raises her essence to 60.. next I go though her Elemental Fire and Spirit mastery invocations, raising both by 2 each for 8 points.. I also decide to raise Shielding to 3 for 4 points, leaving me with 3 points.. thinking the matter over, I decide to add 15 points of essence to her, it never hurts to have more essence, so her total comes to 75.. on a note, that also slows her aging rate to 1/3rd that of normal.. but she was barely 23 when she began citadel training, legally she's not any older, but she's actually got another decade of experience now... but her age was frozen by the Ambrosia, so even though she's 33 in terms of years, she's only 23 biologically... and considering her slowed aging rate, even without further ambrosia treatments, she'll be 50 before she's physically past 30.

Skills Training - after a thought or two, I decide to spend 2 points to raise Martial Arts to 5, and 7 points to raise magic bolt to 7, and the last point I spend taking a specialty in kicks to Martial Arts.. I now go back and edit it all.

Final Notes: Just her skill training and attributes makes Fiona a rare human being, an incredibly agile, strong willed, tough, genus human, with incredible courage, reflexes and situational awareness, she's the sort of person you want at your back in battle.. with her power over fire, she's dangerous even to supernatural beings, who are likely to regard her respectfully once they get a good look at her in action, her power over fire is strong enough to take down most armed transports, except for tanks, she would need to depend on other tactics there... Fiona's the sort of person who can tell a demon, lesser deity, or vampyre to back off or she'll burn them ash, and make it stick.. on another note, at this point, I'd chose to start reaching out to other powers beyond control over fire, her mastery over flame is almost at the supreme possible for a human, improving the invocations she has to level 3 or up to 5 in some cases would be my first focus, then I'd start looking at picking up other Invocations and Seer Powers, and maybe a few of the other lesser Keys. Her back story needs fleshing out, but this is a example character, so I didn't cover that aspect all that closely..

Picture: I like this one for her, because it's a good hint of how attractive she is, and how much of her dangerous side isn't immediately apparent

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[Quantum Fire]

After some thought, I've decided to redo this idea... I like it somewhat, I think something more or the level of a mystical school is in order, I'll totally redesign this from top to bottom for that purpose... setting unchanged, but with a different character layout of sorts.