THE ANGEL GAME An incomplete GURPS supplement written by Greg Franklin-Littmann. Dedicated to Mel, the Angel I married. "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought Michael and his angels And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him". [Revelation 12.7-9] DISCLAIMER This is just a game. It isn't intended to represent reality. If you are offended, then I think you are taking it way too seriously. SETTING: THE WORLD OF DERIVATIVENESS "And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit...". [Revelation 18.2] Players of recent R.P.G.s will no doubt notice that this game setting is heavily influenced by other settings on the market. So? I don't apologize for this, since I am making no money from this project. All the same, let me make a nod of recognition towards In Nomine, from Steve Jackson Games, for being the first role-playing game in which the P.C.s are angels and devils, towards KULT from Metropolis games for being the first role-playing game in which God not only disappeared, but proved hard to remember since his disappearance, and towards the various World of Darkness games from White Wolf for the whole genre of players-as- troubled-supernatural-creatures-skulking-about-secretly-in-a-world-much- like-our-own-but-even-darker-and-more-screwed-up. Before you ask, no, the game does NOT take place in the World of Darkness. WHAT DO ANGELS DO? Angels disagree amongst themselves as to what they ought to be doing but they all agree that the appropriate way of life is one which revolves around humanity. This is completely instinctual. Any Angel which stays away from humans for any length of time will experience very powerful loneliness, even if they have plenty of Angelic company. For this reason, the G.M. should not allow mortals to be nothing but background scenery for the P.C. while they spend all their time dealing with other Angels. Angels are simply too naturally interested in humans for that. For more detail on what different factions think should be done with humanity, see the various Choirs. Whatever Angels choose to do, they usually don't do it too openly. Advertising to the world that you are an Angel is a good way to have some Angels with different opinions wind up on your doorstep and initiate holy-war. THE PLAYER CHARACTERS "For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle...". [Revelation 16.14] "And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. And, behold, the angel of the Lord came unto him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands". [The Acts 12.6-7] The Players take the parts of powerful and passionate supernatural beings who are left to fend for themselves and for humanity after the disappearance of their supernatural leaders. It is not certain what happened to God and Satan or even when it happened. Memories of both beings have become fuzzy, and those who do claim to recall them clearly tell contradictory stories. Some say that they died. Some say that they abandoned the universe. Some say that they simply don't communicate with their servants any more, for reasons known only to themselves. The P.C.s are as cut off from Heaven and Hell as they are from their divine and infernal leadership. These supernatural beings are all known as "Angels". There are different kinds of Angels. All Angels are associated with a Choir (a term taken from In Nomine). A Choir is a group of Angels with similar outlooks. Although most Angels remain for their entire existence within one Choir, they may change Choirs if they wish. There are twelve Choirs - the Apocalypts, the Bachae, the Bhoddidsatva, the Children of the Crucible, the Furies, the Justicars, the Lamenters, the Mammonites, the Muses, the Narcissites, the Reapers, and the Tiamatics. All Angels are further classified into Celestial, Fallen and Infernal. This distinction is particularly vital to take note of, as it may be tempting to assume that anything called an "Angel" is filled with goodness. Nothing could be further from the truth. Indeed, Satan himself was said to have been an angel who chose to devote himself to evil. Many others have followed in his footsteps. An Angel is Celestial if they ally themselves with goodness. Importantly, this does not mean that the Angel is morally perfect, even in their own eyes. More important still is the fact that, as in our own world, there are varying interpretations of which things are good and which things are evil. Thus, in the absence of any ultimate authority, any Angel can call themselves "Celestial" simply by deciding that they are good. Other Celestial Angels with different points of view may disagree strongly with their conclusion. It is worth remembering that many of the greatest tyrants in history would certainly have described themselves as being "good". An Angel is Infernal if they ally themselves with evil. Once again, without any ultimate authority to judge, this is a subjective decision and two Infernal Angels could angrily deny that the other is deserving of the name. An Angel is considered Fallen if they are unable to fit themselves into a Choir in either its Celestial or Infernal aspect. They are termed Fallen because all Angels are initially members of one of the Choirs, although some develop into misfits and are forced to drop out. Fallen Angels are frequently more morally ambivalent than their Celestial or Infernal brethren, although that doesn't say much as Angels by nature tend to be obsessed with moral concerns. An Infernal Angel who falls is frequently said to have "fallen up", while a Celestial Angel who falls is usually said to have "fallen down". It is common for members of a Choir who switch between its Celestial and Infernal factions to go through a period of being Fallen in-between - regardless of the direction in which they are heading. It is vital to keep in mind that a Fallen Angel doesn't have to be weak in their convictions. All that is necessary is that the Angel can no longer embrace the doctrines of any of the Choirs. They may still support the tenets of a Choir, but they cannot or will not follow them. For example, a Fallen Lamenter might have come to approve of violence in a good cause, or might have found that although they abhore violence, they sometimes lose their tempers and resort to it nevertheless. Every Choir has Celestial, Fallen, and Infernal members. As can be imagined, the Choir's are not known for internal cohesion. Indeed, the distinction between Celestial and Infernal is generally regarded as more important than the distinction between different Choirs.