Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested.

Cally · 03-26-2014, 06:22 PM

Hello everyone. I am a long-time player of In Nomine but first-time poster here. I've recently gotten involved in In Nomine again, and was seized with an idea for an adventure seed and wanted feedback.

Here's the basic player-safe information:

The basic idea is a sole-servitor Seraph of Judgment suddenly had her Heart shatter, spontaneously. She was working alone with a role, in a city that has a fair-good size Judgment tether, a small Game tether, a tiny Theft tether, and no other known tethers (though possibly there are celestials of other Words around). The PCs need to find out what happened to her. Was she soul-killed? Did she go outcast? And if she is outcast (or worse, fallen), how did THAT happen? (Dominic greatly suspects she is not fallen completely because the Game tether would likely have notified him of that so he would know she's no longer under his Jurisdiction. But nothing's impossible.)

The idea would be the PCs would be handed her last known Mercurian resonance results, and info on her role, and set to find Things. Hopefully quickly. The emphasis is on finding out the Truth, and bringing her back if she's still alive.

The PCs would ideally be a special Judgment Triad, but there could be room for servitors of other Words if they have attunements that would help or other resources Judgment wouldn't have. This could possibly even be a game where the PCs are Soldiers of God. The angels have more influence in this city than the demons, and Dominic's very wary of sending obvious celestials running around suddenly for fear it might upset the balance of power and cause the demons to escalate things. This is also why the solo Judge suddenly disappearing is so... worrying.

The rest of my ideas for how it plays out is secret in case I actually do run it someday, but I'd really like to hear feedback in private on the rest of the idea from someone who could say 'That won't work,' if I'm forgetting some song or resonance that could easily solve the case instantly.

Thanks for reading.
-Cally

Omegonthesane · 03-27-2014, 08:52 AM

It is not possible for there to be quite so many possibilities there - angelic Hearts will crack when the owner becomes Discordant and/or Outcast, but if it shatters then you have either Fallen or been soul-killed. That still leaves room for a mystery, it just means that from the outset the range of possible values that it could currently be is smaller. Indeed, if you're dead-set on the real truth being that she Fell or died, that can simply happen during the investigation if her Heart starts out only cracked.

Jason · 03-27-2014, 11:23 AM

I think this is a fine mystery, and I'd be interested to hear how it goes. It's true that, in the rules as written, Hearts only shatter completely when an angel Falls (or gets soul killed? I forget on that point), but there's at least one in-canon situation where a Heart was broken through other means, fooling even Superiors. (I'd tell you where, but it'd be a spoiler...)

So, yeah, I could definitely see Dominic wanting to investigate further, ESPECIALLY if the angel in question has never "tripped" (simply cracking the Heart and going Outcast), nor shown any inclination toward that -- especially if the plot seed in question was AFTER an event that proved that there's more than one way to bust a Heart.

Now, as for which Servitors and Superiors would be involved: The only downside to running a game where everybody belongs to the same Superior, as I see it, is that as players advance and earn new attunements, they end up feeling like they duplicate one another's powers too much. I could see others getting in on this action with the right excuses, though, like...

Creation/Revelations: The missing Seraph is actually a Servitor of Litheroy or Eli in service to Judgment (since those Servitors tend to be "on loan" a lot). Servitors of Creation or Revelations might get wind of the disappearance and, ah, insist on "lending help."

War: Michael has been thinking of this as a likely battleground in the near future, and this looks suspiciously like an assassination meant to tip the balance. That puts this situation in his territory, too. He might even send someone separately from Dominic's party, but when they encounter each other at the scene of the crime, there's something (an NPC, a dangerous situation, etc.) that encourages them to pool their efforts rather than butt heads.

The Wind: Janus strongly suspects this is some kind of prank by Valefor's Servitors. It would be just like them to steal an entire Seraph of Judgment. He's sending someone in too, like it or not!

... And so on. But yeah, this sounds totally doable and interesting to me.

Cally · 03-27-2014, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omegonthesane

It is not possible for there to be quite so many possibilities there - angelic Hearts will crack when the owner becomes Discordant and/or Outcast, but if it shatters then you have either Fallen or been soul-killed.

Oh, hm. You're absolutely right. Hm. That does sort of put a damper on the mystery.

I think I'd probably have to house rule that being Outcast causes heart-shattering in this case. It's too integral to the idea.

Unless possibly there's a canon song or relic that can cause an angel's heart to shatter remotely? Not the ideal solution, but maybe it could work. It's not possible, in terms of the mystery, for the angel in question to have ascended to Heaven and shattered it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason

there's at least one in-canon situation where a Heart was broken through other means, fooling even Superiors. (I'd tell you where, but it'd be a spoiler...)

I'd be interested in hearing this. PM me?

As for other words that could be involved...

Revelations: It wouldn't work being that the missing Seraph is Revelation IST Judgment. The Seraph had a role, for one. Second of all, her primary purpose was to examine local records and identify diabolic influence. She had to maintain some degree of cover that I doubt a Revelation servitor could handle for long. One of the PCs could possibly be Revelation. Especially an Ofanite (or at least someone with the Ofanite of Revelation attunement).

Creation: Not possible for the servitor to be Creation IST Judgment, too Judgment-integral, Dominic wouldn't trust, the Creation rites and attunements would not help the Seraph's job, etc. Possibly one of the PCs could be Creation IST something, but not IST Judgment. There's a possibility of information coming out that should be Judgment-only.

War: I actually have considered this, but it wouldn't be a good role for a PC. Again, possibility of information coming out that should be Judgment-only

The Wind: This is actually a really good idea. I could see Dominic, perhaps begrudgingly, accepting help from the Wind. The Ofanite attunement especially could come in handy.

I also think Destiny and possibly Flowers could make good potential PC words.

Omegonthesane · 03-27-2014, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cally

Oh, hm. You're absolutely right. Hm. That does sort of put a damper on the mystery.

I think I'd probably have to house rule that being Outcast causes heart-shattering in this case. It's too integral to the idea.

Unless possibly there's a canon song or relic that can cause an angel's heart to shatter remotely? Not the ideal solution, but maybe it could work. It's not possible, in terms of the mystery, for the angel in question to have ascended to Heaven and shattered it.

I find it quite telling that you feel it is absolutely necessary that there be ambiguity as to whether, at any given moment, the Seraph in question has specifically crossed the line. It is entirely possible to be Outcast and actively serving forces hostile to Heaven without gaining dissonance, unless the GM specifically adds another super speshul dissonance condition that makes it not so - a Seraph who doesn't Jump and doesn't lie cannot Fall, a Cherub who never resonates cannot become dissonant, a Kyriotate who takes care of his hosts, a Mercurian whose servants do his dirty work, etc etc.

What Jason is alluding to would still lead the players down a very specific alley at first - unless you ran the Revelations Cycle or accept its events as being canon in your local universe, none of the Archangels can think of a way that a shattered Heart could possibly indicate that the angel attached to it was neither Fallen nor destroyed. So, right from the word go, the assumption would be that she's Fallen or been destroyed, with basically no question that she might have merely been Outcast - because in canon it took over twenty thousand years for the first exception to the rule to occur.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cally

Creation: Not possible for the servitor to be Creation IST Judgment, too Judgment-integral, Dominic wouldn't trust, the Creation rites and attunements would not help the Seraph's job, etc.

Every rule has exceptions. If some Eliite has proven themselves worthy, and/or has a good service record from before their Archangel went walkies, it wouldn't even be a stretch for Dominic to trust them like a proper favoured Servitor.

Cally · 03-27-2014, 07:05 PM

Well okay. I can't really get more feedback without fully explaining the idea. Here, I'll outline my idea:

UNDER HERE WILL BE SPOILERS

At the start of the adventure, the PCs will be handed a full mercurian resonance result list for the Seraph, which will give them a list of celestials in her past who could be interviewed. Some may be in Heaven, some may be in the area on Earth. At least one PC should have a Song of Affinity. They need a personal artifact from the Seraph...

Ideas:
The PCs can personally visit any Celestial the Seraph had contact with, or have them summoned to the local Judgment Tether if they're in Heaven or otherwise far away. Possible ideas to get a personal item: visit a Creationer she had a relationship with once (before Eli's walkout) to get a lock of hair she gave that angel. Visit a Librarian she loaned a book to... etc. SOMETHING that requires leg work. The Seneschal can't just hand over a pen she used once.

Or the angels can just get something mundane from her role. If they try to get something mundane from the Seraph's work, they'll find all of her things were already removed... Or at least scattered so it can't be known what was what. If they don't immediately go to the Seraph's address, it will be destroyed somehow, most likely in fire. (No disturbance.) (They will get a fair chance at doing this.)

Eventually they'll get something that belongs to the Seraph. The song will reveal she is NOT in hell, and they'll eventually find the song leading them to a building complex in the city that should be a neutral distance from any tether. It should be vaguely Game oriented. (Maybe a run-down government building, maybe run-down government sponsored housing, etc.) The song will show the Seraph's position doesn't move. Every indication should be that the Seraph is being held prisoner, or otherwise just is not moving from that spot.

Now they need a step 2:

Ideas:
1. Investigate
The Game is probably responsible. But with their Humanity attunement, you can't tell who's a Gamester demon and who's human. But... Theft might know. At the very least, it might be more obvious to find someone who is undeniably a DEMON who is Theft with attunements and such.

If the PCs are clever or desperate, they can try to catch or otherwise track down a Theft demon and either strike a deal with them or outright interrogate them. They should be able to find one who will eventually let loose he knows of three Game servitors in that area. Seraph resonance will confirm that he/she believes it, but Humanity might obscure the issue. If they captured him/her, they can give them to the tether to have as a hostage.

Once they get descriptions, they can narrow it down to a specific office and see that there are indeed one person who looks like those descriptions hanging around. They can then stalk them to find the Seraph's Torture Room.

Alternatively, if someone has the Ofanite of Revelation or Ofanite of Wind attunement, they can skip this step completely and just sneak into the place.

2. Full out assault.
Or, the PCs can just go in guns blazing. The seneschal will offer them all mundane weaponry he has. Dominic will give them several options.

1. A 12-force Malakite of the Sword will be summoned. He will aid them and follow any order they give them. (If one of the PCs is a Malakite, he may be less than 12 forces to compensate.)

2. Dominic will give them a Summoning Feather which will auto-succeed in summoning Dominic. This is for if the PCs decide they are strong enough to overwhelm the defenses themselves but probably couldn't handle a Demon Prince showing up.

3. If the PCs decide they don't want to handle combat OR be sneaky... there's a War tether in a town about an hour away. Dominic can persuade Michael to loan them a squad of War angels who will get the job done, period. However... this will not be the preferred option. Michael hates Dominic. He WILL send help, but he'll want compensation, not to mention the War angels won't exactly have Judgment's interests in mind. They'll definitely have their own agenda and probably laugh if the PCs try to order them around or stop them from doing their own thing.

Dominic will not provide a Feather if option 1 or 3 is chosen, the Sword or War angel(s) can summon their own Superior if a Demon Prince shows up. If they just want a song or attunement or something, sure.

Result:

1. Stalking a Game servitor will earn them a key-card that can be used to get into the Torture Room, or something to that effect. Possibly also they can kidnap the Game servitor and hold them hostage until Humanity wears off. Killing them outright will cause disturbance, of course.
2. Going in guns blazing, they'll find heavy resistance from the Game Servitors. The Game will focus on taking down any Malakim, then Elohim, then Mercurians, then Cherubim, then Ofanim, then Kyriotates, then Seraphim, in that order. They will try very hard to take down the Sword Malakite if he is present. (If the PCs happen to have a Bright Lilim, they will target him/her last.)

Either the team will 'peacefully' sneak into the Torture Room, or they'll bust in the door. Either way, they'll find the Seraph in manacles in a cell, with signs of being tortured...

Cally · 03-27-2014, 07:08 PM

Continued...

At this point they will notice things:
1. Malakite of Judgment attunement will show she is NOT dissonant.
2. Ofanite of Judgment attunement will show she IS discordant.
3. A Locket of Truth will show her celestial form is of a Balseraph.
4. A Malakite resonance will show she is a Balseraph, and her noble-ignoble deeds will be "Serving 'fuzz' faithfully." "Waiting patiently." "Fell."
5. Any Elohim resonance will get her emotional state as 'in pain' or 'distraught'. High rolls will get 'because she was beaten to look like she has convincing wounds,' or 'she's not sure if her plan will work'. Elohim of Judgment attunement will show no guilt.
6. A Mercurian resonance will show she has a new relationship with 'fuzz' and 'fuzz'.
7. If they try to ask her questions, she will give truthful replies.
8. The manacles binding her look like force-cuffs, but aren't.
If they somehow notice NONE of these things, and don't question if she's betrayed Heaven or not, then they can kick down the cell door and escort the Seraph out... to a squad of waiting Malakite-Bals.

If the PCs snuck into the room, the door will shut behind them and the other two Gamesters will be there (they're actually Malakite-Bals of Fate, only the one Humanity-using demon was Game). If the PCs burst in, Kronos appears out of the wall. Any Malakim in the party will be killed outright or at least knocked into the Marches. The rest will be bound up, possibly knocked out too. At this point, they only want to outright kill the Malakim, and the others will be woken up. (Especially if the Sword Malakite is an NPC, I don't want an NPC upstaging the PCs.)

...Though if they called in the War servitors, all bets are off. They'll burst in, kill everyone, kill the Balseraph too, and generally have a party. They'll say they'll send the evidence they uncover to the Judgment tether 'later'. Dominic won't like this outcome, but all the PCs will live.

What's really going on here?

1. The Seraph wasn't pushed, nor did she become outcast from dissonance. She Jumped. She walked calmly into the Game tether, announced she was a Seraph of Judgment who wished to defect, and then had Asmodeus summoned, and she somehow managed to do it without being caught, or recognized, or just killed outright.
2. When Asmodeus got there, he was ready to accept, and told her to start telling lies, then. She then said she actually wanted to serve Kronos. She'd of course provide all the information she knew about Judgment, but she didn't want to serve Asmodeus directly. Asmodeus was annoyed, but called in Kronos anyway. They're allies, and it's not like she wanted to serve Kobal, right?
3. She resonated Kronos and instant-fell. (She was too proud to just start randomly lying.) This left her with a special kind of discord that even a Superior can't remove. However... Lucifer can. But, he's whimsical, and not inclined to do favors for Balseraphs who just fell because they 'felt like it.' Especially not Balseraphs of Fate who specifically requested they be attuned to the Seraph resonance.

The purpose of the deception was for many reasons:
1. She gets the angels captive, as well as any artifacts they're carrying. If the angels can then be Pushed or choose to fall like her, that's a great thing. She'll say she's authorized to ensure they can choose to serve any Word they desire and generally make it an 'attractive' offer. If any of the angels are redeemed demons, she'll offer to pardon them for their defection. If a Seraph resonates this line, they will get the fact: YES, LUCIFER SAID ALL THIS, AND HE BELIEVED IT, NO SUPERIOR FUZZ, even if they have a low CD. Lucifer's evil. [Though if one of the PCs is a Bright Lilim, no pardon offer for them. They'll have to 'earn' back their debt by binding to Asmodeus. "But even that's generous, you must know."]
2. She proves to Lucifer that she can complete a major act of deception and he'll remove her discord. Maybe he'll even give her a Word (that last part is wishful thinking).
3. ...There's a human who has the Fate to shoot up the Judgment tether. By forcing Judgment to put its resources into tracking her down, the tether will be relatively defenseless. Indeed, they'll be watching the Game tether for moves, they'll never expect a random human to do it (especially if the PCs tracked down a Theft servitor earlier and Judgment is watching for specific Game servitors with Humanity). The event, which will occur soon, will alter how the tether is seen in the eyes of humans, and might drive Judgment from the area completely. [Depending on how the game is going, she might go into full Gloating For the Sake Of Evil mode, or she might omit this part or only imply it. If Kronos is present at this part he'll cough and stop her. If there's a Seraph resonating her and they get Full Truth I'll reveal it that way.]

Note that the angels will be free to talk to her. If they say things like 'why did you Jump,' or 'come back, your friends are waiting for you,' they will learn the following things:
1. She was a very very repressed angel. She willfully forsook many 'pleasures' that other angels do every day, for fear she might like them and grow accustomed to it. Then one day she indulged herself a little (Seraph resonance will get that she indulged in pride, petty cruelty, etc. mundane things that didn't make her dissonant). She realized she liked it. She also realized Dominic's next visit would discover this. Her new sense of pride made her fearful of losing her position and the good favor she enjoyed, so she went the full opposite direction into defecting. She requested the Seraph resonance from Kronos specifically because she knows what she's doing is wrong and is choosing to do it anyway. [Is she right? Would Dominic have been displeased with her? Surely. Would he have reassigned her? Possibly. Was choosing to Jump a decision that completely blew it out of proportion? Almost certainly.]
2. If they make reference to her friends, her reaction will depend on whether they actually talked to them about her. If they're just namedropping from the Mercurian resonance result and haven't actually met or talked with them, she'll sneer and scorn them (she'll know from her Seraph resonance). If the PCs actually have talked to her friends and know they care for her, they'll get very obvious silence. [Elohite of Judgment attunement will show guilt-sweat. But if the Elohite announces it, he'll probably get attacked for his trouble.]
If Kronos is here for this part, he will be silent. He's taking notes.

I have more written, but I think that's more than enough to get some preliminary feedback. Given this, if the heart shattering indicates she Fell or achieved Soul-Death, then there's no question the whole thing is a trap.

alexondria · 03-27-2014, 07:56 PM

well having fallen doesn't mean she meant to or was purposefully bad. If she was a favored servitor that Dominic was proud of it wouldn't be hard to convince yourself that if she has fallen she was tricked and thus could be redeemed. Though with her likely dissonance conditions I can't think of a way to do that off the top of my head I'm sure someone can.

Omegonthesane · 03-28-2014, 06:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cally

I'd be MUCH more wary of using the direct presence of actual Superiors - this is inherently far more railroad-y than is really sensible, unless you have a strict policy of handling Superiors as beings that actually have stats and can be Vessel-killed by mere Servitors.

The special Discord implies bigger things about the setting than normally exist, and is not necessary for the plot in mind. Lucifer can just tell Asmodeus & Kronos not to remove it until he says OK, rather than them having to be literally unable to do so.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cally

I have more written, but I think that's more than enough to get some preliminary feedback. Given this, if the heart shattering indicates she Fell or achieved Soul-Death, then there's no question the whole thing is a trap.

There really shouldn't be any question anyway that they are walking into a trap. Wherever there is an angel, a Soldier of God, or a former one of either of those who is in demonic custody, there is a trap.

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexondria

well having fallen doesn't mean she meant to or was purposefully bad. If she was a favored servitor that Dominic was proud of it wouldn't be hard to convince yourself that if she has fallen she was tricked and thus could be redeemed. Though with her likely dissonance conditions I can't think of a way to do that off the top of my head I'm sure someone can.

Stick on Will Shackles, force the Seraph to say "I am a teapot" 7 times without converting any of the resulting dissonance into Discord.

For a more serious game, torture the Seraph instead of or in addition to using Will shackles to force it to tell seven consecutive lies.

Cally · 03-28-2014, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omegonthesane

I'd be MUCH more wary of using the direct presence of actual Superiors - this is inherently far more railroad-y than is really sensible, unless you have a strict policy of handling Superiors as beings that actually have stats and can be Vessel-killed by mere Servitors.

This is certainly fair. Kronos actually being present was just a backup idea for if the PCs could reasonably overpower the defenses and still be in great shape.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omegonthesane

The special Discord implies bigger things about the setting than normally exist, and is not necessary for the plot in mind. Lucifer can just tell Asmodeus & Kronos not to remove it until he says OK, rather than them having to be literally unable to do so.

Well, actually it does. In the best resolution of the adventure, the PCs will be able to capture the Jumped Seraph and then Dominic will hold a trial. The trial isn't so much to show that she's guilty (because if the game reached this stage that's a foregone conclusion), but whether the appropriate punishment is 'soul death' or 'imprisonment until ready to attempt redemption.' The discord she has will be a factor. Either as an argument to kill her, or a reason to keep her alive.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omegonthesane

There really shouldn't be any question anyway that they are walking into a trap. Wherever there is an angel, a Soldier of God, or a former one of either of those who is in demonic custody, there is a trap.

I'm hoping the PCs more pick up the implication of 'The Seraph has been kidnapped and being Pushed into falling' than 'the Seraph's already fallen and is working specifically to trap them.'

03-26-2014, 06:22 PM	#1
Cally Join Date: Mar 2014	Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested. Hello everyone. I am a long-time player of In Nomine but first-time poster here. I've recently gotten involved in In Nomine again, and was seized with an idea for an adventure seed and wanted feedback. Here's the basic player-safe information: The basic idea is a sole-servitor Seraph of Judgment suddenly had her Heart shatter, spontaneously. She was working alone with a role, in a city that has a fair-good size Judgment tether, a small Game tether, a tiny Theft tether, and no other known tethers (though possibly there are celestials of other Words around). The PCs need to find out what happened to her. Was she soul-killed? Did she go outcast? And if she is outcast (or worse, fallen), how did THAT happen? (Dominic greatly suspects she is not fallen completely because the Game tether would likely have notified him of that so he would know she's no longer under his Jurisdiction. But nothing's impossible.) The idea would be the PCs would be handed her last known Mercurian resonance results, and info on her role, and set to find Things. Hopefully quickly. The emphasis is on finding out the Truth, and bringing her back if she's still alive. The PCs would ideally be a special Judgment Triad, but there could be room for servitors of other Words if they have attunements that would help or other resources Judgment wouldn't have. This could possibly even be a game where the PCs are Soldiers of God. The angels have more influence in this city than the demons, and Dominic's very wary of sending obvious celestials running around suddenly for fear it might upset the balance of power and cause the demons to escalate things. This is also why the solo Judge suddenly disappearing is so... worrying. The rest of my ideas for how it plays out is secret in case I actually do run it someday, but I'd really like to hear feedback in private on the rest of the idea from someone who could say 'That won't work,' if I'm forgetting some song or resonance that could easily solve the case instantly. Thanks for reading. -Cally

03-27-2014, 08:52 AM	#2
Omegonthesane Join Date: Aug 2010	Re: Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested. It is not possible for there to be quite so many possibilities there - angelic Hearts will crack when the owner becomes Discordant and/or Outcast, but if it shatters then you have either Fallen or been soul-killed. That still leaves room for a mystery, it just means that from the outset the range of possible values that it could currently be is smaller. Indeed, if you're dead-set on the real truth being that she Fell or died, that can simply happen during the investigation if her Heart starts out only cracked.

03-27-2014, 11:23 AM	#3
Jason Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston, MA	Re: Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested. I think this is a fine mystery, and I'd be interested to hear how it goes. It's true that, in the rules as written, Hearts only shatter completely when an angel Falls (or gets soul killed? I forget on that point), but there's at least one in-canon situation where a Heart was broken through other means, fooling even Superiors. (I'd tell you where, but it'd be a spoiler...) So, yeah, I could definitely see Dominic wanting to investigate further, ESPECIALLY if the angel in question has never "tripped" (simply cracking the Heart and going Outcast), nor shown any inclination toward that -- especially if the plot seed in question was AFTER an event that proved that there's more than one way to bust a Heart. Now, as for which Servitors and Superiors would be involved: The only downside to running a game where everybody belongs to the same Superior, as I see it, is that as players advance and earn new attunements, they end up feeling like they duplicate one another's powers too much. I could see others getting in on this action with the right excuses, though, like... Creation/Revelations: The missing Seraph is actually a Servitor of Litheroy or Eli in service to Judgment (since those Servitors tend to be "on loan" a lot). Servitors of Creation or Revelations might get wind of the disappearance and, ah, insist on "lending help." War: Michael has been thinking of this as a likely battleground in the near future, and this looks suspiciously like an assassination meant to tip the balance. That puts this situation in his territory, too. He might even send someone separately from Dominic's party, but when they encounter each other at the scene of the crime, there's something (an NPC, a dangerous situation, etc.) that encourages them to pool their efforts rather than butt heads. The Wind: Janus strongly suspects this is some kind of prank by Valefor's Servitors. It would be just like them to steal an entire Seraph of Judgment. He's sending someone in too, like it or not! ... And so on. But yeah, this sounds totally doable and interesting to me.

03-27-2014, 07:05 PM	#6
Cally Join Date: Mar 2014	Re: Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested. Well okay. I can't really get more feedback without fully explaining the idea. Here, I'll outline my idea: UNDER HERE WILL BE SPOILERS At the start of the adventure, the PCs will be handed a full mercurian resonance result list for the Seraph, which will give them a list of celestials in her past who could be interviewed. Some may be in Heaven, some may be in the area on Earth. At least one PC should have a Song of Affinity. They need a personal artifact from the Seraph... Ideas: The PCs can personally visit any Celestial the Seraph had contact with, or have them summoned to the local Judgment Tether if they're in Heaven or otherwise far away. Possible ideas to get a personal item: visit a Creationer she had a relationship with once (before Eli's walkout) to get a lock of hair she gave that angel. Visit a Librarian she loaned a book to... etc. SOMETHING that requires leg work. The Seneschal can't just hand over a pen she used once. Or the angels can just get something mundane from her role. If they try to get something mundane from the Seraph's work, they'll find all of her things were already removed... Or at least scattered so it can't be known what was what. If they don't immediately go to the Seraph's address, it will be destroyed somehow, most likely in fire. (No disturbance.) (They will get a fair chance at doing this.) Eventually they'll get something that belongs to the Seraph. The song will reveal she is NOT in hell, and they'll eventually find the song leading them to a building complex in the city that should be a neutral distance from any tether. It should be vaguely Game oriented. (Maybe a run-down government building, maybe run-down government sponsored housing, etc.) The song will show the Seraph's position doesn't move. Every indication should be that the Seraph is being held prisoner, or otherwise just is not moving from that spot. Now they need a step 2: Ideas: 1. Investigate The Game is probably responsible. But with their Humanity attunement, you can't tell who's a Gamester demon and who's human. But... Theft might know. At the very least, it might be more obvious to find someone who is undeniably a DEMON who is Theft with attunements and such. If the PCs are clever or desperate, they can try to catch or otherwise track down a Theft demon and either strike a deal with them or outright interrogate them. They should be able to find one who will eventually let loose he knows of three Game servitors in that area. Seraph resonance will confirm that he/she believes it, but Humanity might obscure the issue. If they captured him/her, they can give them to the tether to have as a hostage. Once they get descriptions, they can narrow it down to a specific office and see that there are indeed one person who looks like those descriptions hanging around. They can then stalk them to find the Seraph's Torture Room. Alternatively, if someone has the Ofanite of Revelation or Ofanite of Wind attunement, they can skip this step completely and just sneak into the place. 2. Full out assault. Or, the PCs can just go in guns blazing. The seneschal will offer them all mundane weaponry he has. Dominic will give them several options. 1. A 12-force Malakite of the Sword will be summoned. He will aid them and follow any order they give them. (If one of the PCs is a Malakite, he may be less than 12 forces to compensate.) 2. Dominic will give them a Summoning Feather which will auto-succeed in summoning Dominic. This is for if the PCs decide they are strong enough to overwhelm the defenses themselves but probably couldn't handle a Demon Prince showing up. 3. If the PCs decide they don't want to handle combat OR be sneaky... there's a War tether in a town about an hour away. Dominic can persuade Michael to loan them a squad of War angels who will get the job done, period. However... this will not be the preferred option. Michael hates Dominic. He WILL send help, but he'll want compensation, not to mention the War angels won't exactly have Judgment's interests in mind. They'll definitely have their own agenda and probably laugh if the PCs try to order them around or stop them from doing their own thing. Dominic will not provide a Feather if option 1 or 3 is chosen, the Sword or War angel(s) can summon their own Superior if a Demon Prince shows up. If they just want a song or attunement or something, sure. Result: 1. Stalking a Game servitor will earn them a key-card that can be used to get into the Torture Room, or something to that effect. Possibly also they can kidnap the Game servitor and hold them hostage until Humanity wears off. Killing them outright will cause disturbance, of course. 2. Going in guns blazing, they'll find heavy resistance from the Game Servitors. The Game will focus on taking down any Malakim, then Elohim, then Mercurians, then Cherubim, then Ofanim, then Kyriotates, then Seraphim, in that order. They will try very hard to take down the Sword Malakite if he is present. (If the PCs happen to have a Bright Lilim, they will target him/her last.) Either the team will 'peacefully' sneak into the Torture Room, or they'll bust in the door. Either way, they'll find the Seraph in manacles in a cell, with signs of being tortured...

03-27-2014, 07:08 PM	#7
Cally Join Date: Mar 2014	Re: Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested. Continued... At this point they will notice things: 1. Malakite of Judgment attunement will show she is NOT dissonant. 2. Ofanite of Judgment attunement will show she IS discordant. 3. A Locket of Truth will show her celestial form is of a Balseraph. 4. A Malakite resonance will show she is a Balseraph, and her noble-ignoble deeds will be "Serving 'fuzz' faithfully." "Waiting patiently." "Fell." 5. Any Elohim resonance will get her emotional state as 'in pain' or 'distraught'. High rolls will get 'because she was beaten to look like she has convincing wounds,' or 'she's not sure if her plan will work'. Elohim of Judgment attunement will show no guilt. 6. A Mercurian resonance will show she has a new relationship with 'fuzz' and 'fuzz'. 7. If they try to ask her questions, she will give truthful replies. 8. The manacles binding her look like force-cuffs, but aren't. If they somehow notice NONE of these things, and don't question if she's betrayed Heaven or not, then they can kick down the cell door and escort the Seraph out... to a squad of waiting Malakite-Bals. If the PCs snuck into the room, the door will shut behind them and the other two Gamesters will be there (they're actually Malakite-Bals of Fate, only the one Humanity-using demon was Game). If the PCs burst in, Kronos appears out of the wall. Any Malakim in the party will be killed outright or at least knocked into the Marches. The rest will be bound up, possibly knocked out too. At this point, they only want to outright kill the Malakim, and the others will be woken up. (Especially if the Sword Malakite is an NPC, I don't want an NPC upstaging the PCs.) ...Though if they called in the War servitors, all bets are off. They'll burst in, kill everyone, kill the Balseraph too, and generally have a party. They'll say they'll send the evidence they uncover to the Judgment tether 'later'. Dominic won't like this outcome, but all the PCs will live. What's really going on here? 1. The Seraph wasn't pushed, nor did she become outcast from dissonance. She Jumped. She walked calmly into the Game tether, announced she was a Seraph of Judgment who wished to defect, and then had Asmodeus summoned, and she somehow managed to do it without being caught, or recognized, or just killed outright. 2. When Asmodeus got there, he was ready to accept, and told her to start telling lies, then. She then said she actually wanted to serve Kronos. She'd of course provide all the information she knew about Judgment, but she didn't want to serve Asmodeus directly. Asmodeus was annoyed, but called in Kronos anyway. They're allies, and it's not like she wanted to serve Kobal, right? 3. She resonated Kronos and instant-fell. (She was too proud to just start randomly lying.) This left her with a special kind of discord that even a Superior can't remove. However... Lucifer can. But, he's whimsical, and not inclined to do favors for Balseraphs who just fell because they 'felt like it.' Especially not Balseraphs of Fate who specifically requested they be attuned to the Seraph resonance. The purpose of the deception was for many reasons: 1. She gets the angels captive, as well as any artifacts they're carrying. If the angels can then be Pushed or choose to fall like her, that's a great thing. She'll say she's authorized to ensure they can choose to serve any Word they desire and generally make it an 'attractive' offer. If any of the angels are redeemed demons, she'll offer to pardon them for their defection. If a Seraph resonates this line, they will get the fact: YES, LUCIFER SAID ALL THIS, AND HE BELIEVED IT, NO SUPERIOR FUZZ, even if they have a low CD. Lucifer's evil. [Though if one of the PCs is a Bright Lilim, no pardon offer for them. They'll have to 'earn' back their debt by binding to Asmodeus. "But even that's generous, you must know."] 2. She proves to Lucifer that she can complete a major act of deception and he'll remove her discord. Maybe he'll even give her a Word (that last part is wishful thinking). 3. ...There's a human who has the Fate to shoot up the Judgment tether. By forcing Judgment to put its resources into tracking her down, the tether will be relatively defenseless. Indeed, they'll be watching the Game tether for moves, they'll never expect a random human to do it (especially if the PCs tracked down a Theft servitor earlier and Judgment is watching for specific Game servitors with Humanity). The event, which will occur soon, will alter how the tether is seen in the eyes of humans, and might drive Judgment from the area completely. [Depending on how the game is going, she might go into full Gloating For the Sake Of Evil mode, or she might omit this part or only imply it. If Kronos is present at this part he'll cough and stop her. If there's a Seraph resonating her and they get Full Truth I'll reveal it that way.] Note that the angels will be free to talk to her. If they say things like 'why did you Jump,' or 'come back, your friends are waiting for you,' they will learn the following things: 1. She was a very very repressed angel. She willfully forsook many 'pleasures' that other angels do every day, for fear she might like them and grow accustomed to it. Then one day she indulged herself a little (Seraph resonance will get that she indulged in pride, petty cruelty, etc. mundane things that didn't make her dissonant). She realized she liked it. She also realized Dominic's next visit would discover this. Her new sense of pride made her fearful of losing her position and the good favor she enjoyed, so she went the full opposite direction into defecting. She requested the Seraph resonance from Kronos specifically because she knows what she's doing is wrong and is choosing to do it anyway. [Is she right? Would Dominic have been displeased with her? Surely. Would he have reassigned her? Possibly. Was choosing to Jump a decision that completely blew it out of proportion? Almost certainly.] 2. If they make reference to her friends, her reaction will depend on whether they actually talked to them about her. If they're just namedropping from the Mercurian resonance result and haven't actually met or talked with them, she'll sneer and scorn them (she'll know from her Seraph resonance). If the PCs actually have talked to her friends and know they care for her, they'll get very obvious silence. [Elohite of Judgment attunement will show guilt-sweat. But if the Elohite announces it, he'll probably get attacked for his trouble.] If Kronos is here for this part, he will be silent. He's taking notes. I have more written, but I think that's more than enough to get some preliminary feedback. Given this, if the heart shattering indicates she Fell or achieved Soul-Death, then there's no question the whole thing is a trap.

03-27-2014, 07:56 PM	#8
alexondria Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Atlanta GA	Re: Judgment Adventure seed idea feedback requested. well having fallen doesn't mean she meant to or was purposefully bad. If she was a favored servitor that Dominic was proud of it wouldn't be hard to convince yourself that if she has fallen she was tricked and thus could be redeemed. Though with her likely dissonance conditions I can't think of a way to do that off the top of my head I'm sure someone can. Last edited by alexondria; 03-27-2014 at 08:11 PM.