Let’s take a closer look at celestial Resonance and Dissonance in 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:
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
Celestial beings resonate with universal patterns, beautiful and terrifying.
Intro
Welcome to Eviliv3, the live media commentary show that answers the question, what does The Symphony have to do with eating my lunch? Subscribe if you’re new to the channel, because today we are continuing our In Nomine series with this episode, Resonance and Dissonance?
Discussion
When it comes to the makeup of the Universe, Angels and Demons are very much a part of the fabric of it. Resonance is the way of perceiving and manipulating the world with celestial senses. This cannot be taught or explained, it simply is. It’s what makes a particular Band of Demons or Choir of Angels who and what they are. To go against your resonance is to be dissonant. This Can lead to discord with the Symphony. To put it another way, Your resonance is your racial perspective and abilities. Going against it may cause problems with your fellow race and make it difficult for you to use your power. Let’s take a closer look at each.
Resonance
A celestial’s resonance is more than just their special way of seeing things–it’s who they are. It defines their very nature. Infernal resonance acts through a demon’s Will, reflecting their ability to impose their diabolical perspective on the world. Divine resonance acts through an angel’s perception, reflecting their ability to attune themself to the Symphony and see its patterns. The celestials’ resonance is tied to their Angelic Choir or Demonic Band. It can be used at any time. To invoke your resonance, you make a d666 roll equal to or lower than your Perception (for Lilim and most Angels) or Will (for Kyriotates and most demons), minus your current dissonance. There may be other modifiers the Game Master, or GM, imposes. A resonance in and of itself doesn’t disturb the Symphony unless you use Essence to increase its success. Essence always disturbs the symphony.
Opposing demonic resonance is easier than opposing Angelic resonance, as anyone with Will may fight back. Any creature with more than 4 Forces may make a will roll to resist the intrusion. You must have a Will Contest, with the higher Check Digit winning. The passive nature of angelic resonance makes it difficult to deflect. For some Demons, a badly-failed resonance roll may lead to dissonance. For angels, a failed resonance roll usually has no ill effects. An angelic resonance roll with a check digit of 6 will make his resonance useless for 6 minus Celestial Forces in hours, or 10 minutes for a Celestial with 6 Celestial Forces.
Technology has given angels and demons interesting ways of using their celestial resonance. The GM will always apply Check Digit modifiers before the roll when used in this way. There are also a few predetermined modifiers that the GM may decide to apply to the attempt from being in physical contact to just seeing a photo of the subject. Will based resonance cannot be used through recordings like photos, videos or audio tapes.
Dissonance
A celestial must act as its nature demands. Failure to do so risks disturbing the delicate harmony between their resonance and the rest of existence. The loss of this celestial balance is called Dissonance. The more dissonance a celestial has, the more difficult it is to use their resonance, and the farther they move from the clarity of their extraordinary perception. Each Choir or Band acquires dissonance in different ways. Each Superior also sets certain requirements on their servants. Failing in living up to these requirements also brings dissonance.
For an angel, dissonance comes from denying its true nature or acting against it. They can become Outcasts, unable to ascent to Heaven or use the Rites and Rituals of their Superior. Extremely dissonant angels can lose friends, purpose and their grace. Falling is what changes an angel to a Demon. For demons, dissonance comes from failing to enforce their selfish will on reality. Grave dissonance may lead to Discord, a painful fracture between the evil soul and his personal Symphony. Demons may seem more likely to be dissonant, but they don’t have the cushion of the Symphony to protect them when they fail. For angels it’s more of an active choice to gain dissonance, but they have more to lose and farther to fall. Celestials may reduce their dissonance by trading it for Discord.
Immediately after a dissonant act, the player rolls a d666 to determine how profoundly it affects them. Angels may become Outcasts or Fall, and Demons may acquire Discord. This roll is done in private.The roll cannot be modified, and at least one die must be equal to or higher then your current dissonance! If it succeeds, you gain another note of dissonance. The Check Digit determines how many hours you will wait to use your resonance again. If all three die are lower than their current dissonance, the roll is failed. A 111 is always good for angels. Failing this roll, leads to disaster! If an angel rolls a 666, or fails on all three dice, they become an Outcast. You lose access to your Superior’s Rites and rituals and can no longer ascend to heaven. If an Outcast angel fails a dissonance roll, they become a demon. If a demon rolls a 111 or fails on all three dice they generate discord and a note of dissonance. The level of the Discord is equal to the check digit of the failed roll. It may apply to a new or existing discord.
Now if an angel rolls 111, divine forces move to shield the angel and no new dissonance is gained, even previous dissonance is forgiven! This applies to Demons who roll 666 on a dissonance roll. Dissonance can be removed. Spending time in a Tether, aiding its Seneschal, can cure dissonance. The Gm may allow you to sacrifice 10 points of Essence, once per adventure, to remove a single note of dissonance. This represents either divine contrition or a renewal of loyalty toward evil. Players may trade 3 notes of dissonance for 1 level of Discord at any time. This both raises the chance of using resonance for angels and lowers the chance they fall.
Discord
As mentioned previously, uncorrected dissonance may lead to Discord. This is a physical reflection of the celestial’s disharmonious nature which takes the form of a physical or mental manifestation. Discordant Angels will receive poor reactions from others, and discordant demons will be more noticeable to angels. Discord is a resource that ranges from level 1 to 6. While the effects of the Discord depends on the form it takes, Celestial Discord affects the way celestials regain essence. At sunrise or sunset for Angels and Demons respectively, the player rolls one die. If the number is higher than the highest level of Celestial discord, they are able to coax essence from the universe. If not, their Discord got in the way.
Angels who earn Discord must deal with it before others report it to their superior. It may cause them to be censured, shunned, punished or for Malakim, destroyed. Upon first noticing another angel’s discord, there must be a reaction roll minus the level of the discord. It may send someone screaming, call the cops or an Archangel! Only an Archangel or Demon Prince may remove a Discord.
Dissonance and Discord should not be seen as an occasional annoyance, but rather a painful tear in the nature of its holder. It affects not only them, but everyone around them, and no one wants to be near them, or would actively rat out those with a Discord. The bottom line is that there are very tangible consequences to being dissonant, so acting in your nature should be at the forefront of the player’s mind.
Outro
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