The #CharacterCreationChallenge for 2025 kicked off January 1st!

[thorr-kan]

The #CharacterCreationChallenge for 2025 kicked off January 1st! I am participating again. While not every character I create will be for In Nomine, there will be some. Rather than spam the group, I will post links in replies to the main topic.

What is the #CharacterCreationChallenge? That's explained here:
https://tardiscaptain.com/gaming/cha...ion-challenge/

The 2025-specific blog post is here:
https://tardiscaptain.com/2024/11/26...ion-challenge/

A lot of us congregate to showcase our creations here:
https://forum.rpg.net/index.php?thre...#post-25379040

Mine are detailed here:
https://thewhiteminotaur.wordpress.com

Come on and join in the fun!

And rather than post a reply to myself, the In Nomine list so far:
https://thewhiteminotaur.wordpress.com/tag/in-nomine/

Note this includes a few characters I did from the #CharacterCreationChallenge from prior years.

[thorr-kan]

"Don't mistake me for a sorcerer. I'm not one of those Symphony-bending, Damned fools. I'm a wizard, boy. And what do wizards do?" I take a pull of my old-fashioned. "We know things, and we meddle."

"And you drink."

"That is not a prerequisite; it's a personal choice," I say as I finish my drink. "Buy the next round."

A mundane, 5 Force human has no Symphonic awareness nor ability to control Essence. But they could still be a player if skilled enough. Aldi Gunnarson is skilled enough.

Aldi is a spritely old man who haunts the Minneapolis campus of the University of Minnesota. He is Professor Emeritus of Judeo-Christian studies, with a sideline in the myths, religions, and practices of indigenous North and South America natives. A constant of the local paranormal and fringe scene, Aldi always seems to know about strange occurrences or when someone needs that special bit of assistance.

Aldi is also a practicing wizard.

Make no mistake; Aldi is completely mundane, but he is also completely clued in. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of the War, a good familiarity with heaven’s allies and the local ethereal players. Aldi is a lucid dreamer with a working knowledge of the Marches. He’s survived in high academia long enough to hone his diplomatic skills and acquire significant fiscal resources. Aldi also retains enough physical conditioning to get away from trouble when it inevitably rears its head. He knows he’s a scholar and not a fighter.

Aldi Gunnarson stands just about 5’6” and weighs slightly portly 155#. He is balding, but retains the good looks of his youth, now morphed into a grandfatherly countenance that inspires trust. He is a snappy dresser and quick with an anecdote.

Aldi is a mundane character built as a 5-Force mundane, with an additional 20 points in advantages, as recommended by the Book of Servants. He could serve as a Class 6 servant to a PC or as a starting human PC granted additional resources by the GM in a mostly celestial party.

Character sheet here:
https://thewhiteminotaur.wordpress.c...jackson-games/

[thorr-kan]

The Ethereal Player’s Guide is the fourth and final player’s guide for In Nomine. It details the third in the War, the denizens of the Marches: the ethereals. I was tangentially involved in the playtest for this book. We all wanted it to be awesome. What we got was about three-quarters of two semi-diametrically opposed manuscripts. The EPG ended up a mess, but it is a glorious mess. For a sourcebook about the Marches, perhaps that’s appropriate.

One of my long-term ideas for projects is to stat up the NPC characters mentioned in the supplement _You Are Here_. This is In Nomine’s big book of locations. A lot of NPCs get a description and no stats. That is fine for generic usage, but the exercise will be useful for a test run of the EPG.

Broggan the wandering troll is described as a fey ethereal tithed to Beleth, the demonic Princess of Nightmares, as part of the Fey Courts’ teind to Hell, as described in Tam Lin. Broggan is an Unseelie fey and not a heroic character at all. _You Are Here_ describes Broggan as a spirt of hunger who relishes humanity’s fear of him. But he is getting tired of Hell’s service.

That is enough excuse for adventure!

The EPG recommends starting ethereals as 6-Force characters. It also gives some optional rules for incorporating them into a celestials & infernals game. Characters start with four character points per Force used to purchase resources. I choose moderate affinities for Fear and Hunger. Being in service to Nightmares, I decide to buy a band attunement from Nightmare and justify that as Broggan’s seventh Force. Since he’s a troll, I choose some fighting skills. Ethereals can create their own vessels, so I chose a level 3 one for Broggan. But as a servant of Hell, I decide not to purchase a Role or Servants. I cannot see Nightmares giving that power to an ethereal. My lasts points boost his Dreaming skill and by a level of Lying. Now he’s got some semblance of social skills.

Broggan’s an ethereal thug. He serves as muscle for Nightmares, both in the Marches and on Earth. He has enough power to perhaps fight free of Nightmares. But lacking any support structure on the Ethereal and Corporeal planes, he will be on the run. I think this is an excellent rendition of the character as a potential NPC.

Broggan is an ethereal character built as a 7-Force character, using the Ethereal Player’s Guide. He takes advantage of the optional free skills for ethereals noted in the EPG and has an additional starting Force from the Princess of Nightmares in return for his service. Broggan lacks any Discord, but has not initiated, either. With these caveats, Broggan is a balanced starting character.

Character sheet here:
https://thewhiteminotaur.wordpress.c...jackson-games/