Let’s learn how to play the tabletop role-playing game In Nomine. In Nomine is a role-playing game designed by Derek Pearcy and published in 1997 by Steve Jackson Games. You can learn more on the official website here: http://www.sjgames.com/innomine/ or the Wikipedia page here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Nomine_(role-playing_game). You can buy In Nomine products here: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/12199/Steve-Jackson-Games/subcategory/28908_30775/In-Nomine?affiliate_id=50797
Time Stamps:
- 0:00 Intro
- 0:26 D666
- 1:24 Target Number
- 2:42 The Contest & Intervention
- 4:30 Essence
- 6:09 Perceiving the Symphony
- 7:04 Resonance and Dissonance
- 8:03 Combat and Healing
- 10:29 Combat Summary
- 11:19 Injury and Death
- 12:04 Outro
About In Nomine
Written by Derek Pearcy + Illustrated by Dan Smith
Edited by Jeff Koke, Steve Jackson, and Susan Pinsonneault
Cover art by John Zeleznik (first printing) and Christopher Shy (second printing)
In Nomine is a modern roleplaying game in which the players take the part of celestial beings – angels and demons – as they struggle for control of humanity and themselves. The celestials, powerful though they may be, are merely pawns in a much larger game being played by their Superiors, the Archangels and Demon Princes. Based on the best-selling French RPG by the wonderfully diabolical Croc!
In Nomine won the Origins Award for Best Graphic Presentation of a Roleplaying Game, Adventure, or Supplement of 1997.
Transcript
Cold Open
In Nomine’s focus is on story over game mechanics.
Intro
Welcome to Eviliv3, the live media commentary show that answers the question, Are the Pagan Gods in the Ethereal Realm? Subscribe if you’re new to the channel, because today we are continuing our In Nomine series with this episode, How to Play In Nomine.
Discussion
D666
Role-playing games are shared stories based on the scene the Game Master or GM creates, and the decisions and actions the Players Character or PC’s take. In some cases this is enough to determine how the scene or story plays out, but in other cases, the PC’s are facing odds in the form of set pieces, other PC’s or even Non-Playing Characters, or NPC’s. In these situations it is necessary to determine who succeeds in the conflict. In Nomine uses six-sided dice to do this. Three six-sided dice in most cases and it is referred to as D666. Two of the three dice are added together, with the object of rolling lower than the Target Number to succeed. If successful the third six-sided dice tells you how well you succeeded with a one being marginal and a six being spectacular. On a failed roll, you roll over the Target Number, with a one telling you how marginal and a six telling you how great the failure.
Target Number
That is the basic concept of the game. The GM assigns a Target Number, or you have to roll better than your opposition in a contest. This is why the third die, known as the Check Digit, is important. The PC’s may have a different looking dice for it, and the GM will use it to add depth to your actions through their interpretation. In some cases the Target Number may be one of your characteristics like Agility, or a combination of a skill you have and your characteristic like Fast-Talk and Will. In either case, you need to roll under that Target Number. In other cases the GM may add modifiers based on the difficulty of the action, these generally range from -2 to +2 toward the Target Number. At the PC’s discretion, they may wish to assign Risk to their action, and at the GM’s approval, this would subtract 1 from the Target Number and add 1 to the Check Digit. This may make the outcome better or worse depending on the roll. Automatic Success is when the final Target Number is over 12, therefore the roll cannot fail barring intervention. In this case any number rolled over twelve would be added to the Check Digit’s success. So a 14 would grant +2 to the Check Digit.
The Contest & Intervention
In a Contest between two PC’s or a PC and a NPC, you would roll against your own ability and your opposition would roll against theirs. For example, if you tried sneaking past a guard, your Target Number would be your Stealth plus your Agility, while the guard’s Target Number would be their Perception. If you both fail, you were unsuccessful in sneaking, and stopped, and the guard failed to notice. If one side succeeded and the other didn’t, the outcome would be apparent. If both sides succeed in their D666 roll, the highest Check Digit would determine the victor of the contest. This is where we should address the aforementioned Intervention. In In Nomine rolling an unmodified 111 symbolizes the Holy Trinity, and if you are an angel, it is a blessing, conversely it is a curse for demons. Likewise, if you roll an unmodified 666, the Number of the Beast, Lucifer will grant advantage to Demons, and a disadvantage to Angels. The exact outcome is determined by the GM but it should be spectacular.
This then begs the question, when should you roll your D666? Ultimately it’s up to the GM, but when you are facing direct opposition, or if the outcome is in question, you should roll. However, not every action should require a D666 roll. If you are running to catch a bus, and you have an average Agility, you could just role-play it. If you are incredibly strong, you shouldn’t have to roll to move furniture. Again, this is entirely up to the discretion of your GM, and their preferred method of running the game. For me, rolls should always be impactful, but not all actions are. I prefer to allow the scene to determine when a D666 roll is relevant.
Essence
There is a last concept to bring up when it comes to making a D666 roll. Every character has Essence, the energy of the universe and the backbeat of the Symphony. Essence can be used by PC’s and NPC’s to improve their Target Numbers, with each point of Essence used before a roll, improving the Target Number by 1. However, this sends a ripple into Symphony, and can be detected by those attuned to it, like Angels and Demons. Each success with the use of Essence, something otherworldly occurs. The outcome is up to the GM, but it should be apparent for those around them, even mundane PC’s or NPC’s. The amount of Essence you have is determined by your total Forces. For example an Angel or Demon would have 9. Essence can be given to others by Celestials, but never more than their total Forces. This is seen as a Thank You or gift. You cannot use your Essence for someone else to improve their success in an action. There are resources known as Reliquaries which hold extra Essence, they are in high demand and rare.
There are a few ways to regenerate Essence. First if another Celestial grants it to you willingly or through a Song. You can also regenerate one point each day. Angels regain it at sunrise, and Demons regain it at sunset. Most Humans regain one at Noon. The last way to regain Essence is to employ one of your Superior’s Rites. These are special tasks your Archangel or Demon Prince requests of you which you can regain a point of Essence in performing.
Perceiving the Symphony
As the Symphony is everything, Celestials are a part of it, and thus affect it through their actions. This also means they can perceive other’s actions in the Symphony as they interfere with its harmony in some way. Some Humans in service to a Celestial may perceive these reverberations as well. The greater the change, the more pronounced the effect on the Symphony. Spending Essence sets the Symphony out of Balance, but using Resonances or attunements doesn’t. Using Songs, entering or leaving the Corporeal Plane, the Appearance of a Superior in the Corporeal Plane, Damaging objects or beings, and Killing Humans all send reverberations throughout the Symphony in varying degrees. These changes can be detected by those in tune to it, and their Check Digit determines the result of their detection on a successful roll. The Target Number is always a mystery to the PC.
Resonance and Dissonance
Resonance and Dissonance are further ways to manipulate the Symphony. The resonance of a Choir or Band is a way of perceiving and manipulating the world. Demons use Will for their Infernal Resonance, and Angels use Perception for their Divine Resonance, which doubles as their Target Numbers. Demonic Resonances are easier to oppose and failed attempts may lead to Dissonance. Angels are difficult to deflect and often have no dissonance to failed Resonance attempts. A failed roll’s Check Digit determines the time before another Resonance may be attempted again. The Loss of Celestial balance is seen as Dissonance. For angels, it comes from denying their true nature. That may lead to becoming an outcast or even Falling and becoming a Demon. For Demons, dissonance can lead to Discord, a painful fracture between his soul and the Symphony. Dissonance Rolls are made by the GM and need not be revealed to the PC.
Combat and Healing
Combat in its simplest form is abstract. Each round, or turn for the PC’s and NPC’s, allows them to make a single attack against their opponent. The successful roll adds the Check Digit to the power of the attack to determine the damage made to their target. Defenses like Armor or actions like Dodging reduce that damage. Game Mechanics in In Nomine are intended to focus on Player choices and not mathematics or special and tactical play. Therefore there are no positioning rules. It is up to the GM to add to or take from these presented mechanics in their own game. Characters who are able to travel to different Realms may engage in battle in each, the damage being applied to your Body, Mind or Soul respectively. In some cases, battle is waged on more than one Realm at a time! If your Body is reduced to 0 you fall unconscious and cannot wake till your body heals.
In Corporeal Combat, if you take damage equal to your vessel level times strength, you will die and reawaken in the Celestial Plane. When you take damage equal to 25% of your Body, you are stunned for the rest of the turn, resulting in your inability to take any actions. A Body naturally heals a hit at a rate of 6 minus strength days. Celestials heal one hit every time they regenerate essence. The Medine skill and some songs can improve the rate of healing as well.
Ethereal combat may take place in the Corporeal or Ethereal realm, but not in the Celestial Realm. A PC must have a Song or Attunement which allows them to do Mind damage, rolling an attack against your Intelligence plus Ethereal forces. The target may attempt to dodge with Precision rather than Agility. Dropping your Mind to 0 ejects you from the Ethereal Realm and you fall unconscious. You also gain one level of Ethereal Discord. Your Mind heals at the Same rate as your Body. Celestial Combat can take place in any Realm, but if you are in a Vessel, you are shielded from blows against the Will. Celestial forms on Earth are not automatically detected until they have been perceived by you. A Celestial attack is against your Will plus Celestial Forces. The defender may dodge with the Dodge Skill plus Perception. Each time the total hits you take in celestial combat equal your Soul number, you permanently lose a Force! Soul hits are healed at 1 per week.
Combat Summary
The Combat Summary can be broken down in a round as follows: 1. Use of a Supernatural Power, such as a Song, Resonance or Attunement, the Highest Perception goes first. This counts as your single action if used. 2. Movement, those with the highest Agility go first, this does not count as an action unless it is used with a skill.Celestial movement is considered an action. 3. Each person can take an action if they haven’t yet. The person with the highest Agility acts first. Combatants who do not take an action may engage in a Full Dodge granting a +2 to dodge or Aim granting a +1 each round for their turn. 4. Those who have been attacked may dodge. 5. Resolve Damage. This ends the round, and you may begin another if there are combatants left.
Injury and Death
If any type of Force is completely lost, the effects are severe as they gain a relevant Discord. If you lose all of your Corporeal Forces, you are unable to take physical form. Loss of Ethereal Forces means you retain the skeleton of memory and personality, but may continue fighting. Loss of Celestial Forces permanently kills you. If you are in a vessel at the time, you become a Remnant, forgetting your Celestial connection entirely, effectively making you invisible to all celestials.
While this doesn’t cover every possible game event or outcome, it does give you a solid groundwork of how the game is run and played. I would encourage those who want to know more to buy a copy of the Core Rules from my affiliate link in the description of this video.
Outro
Thank you for watching today’s In Nomine episode. Subscribe and ring the bell if you are new to the channel. Don’t forget to click the like button and comment to let others learn about this award winning role-playing game and this channel.
And as always, remember that evil spelled backwards is live, so get out there and Be Evil!