"Go to the sign of Marvel's Axe, a dubious inn on the edge of the Thieves Quarter, in the City of Greyhawk, and look to your own wrist. If you perceive a bracelet and dangling dice, watch for the next throw in the war between Law and Chaos and be prepared to follow the compelling geas." -Signal

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Nephilim - Occult Rolleplaying


This is a product by Chaosium that has been discontinued. This started as a French game released in 1992. It was translated into English and released Chaosium in 1994. I was eventually discontinued in 1999 after the release of a number of supplements and a collection of adventures. The subject material is not one that I have a love for. I am really not even sure when and why I picked it up. I can only imagine it was part of a bulk collection or that I bought it for the cover alone not reading it in advance. Roleplaying games struggle with the appearance of being occult in nature and having been through the 80's purge as I like to call it I have championed the idea that there is not active occult material in the games and then this book features a blurb from a High Wiccan Elder/Magus on the back cover. If I were to make a list of games I would get rid of just because this might top the list.

From the back of the book:

 In ages past you lived many lives: your slaves built the Great Pyramid to honor your death; you died for the sins of Jerusalem; you lost your head suggesting they eat cake. You are Nephilim - demi-god, prophet, saint, and magician from the mythic past.

Again you incarnate, to continue an ancient struggle for enlightenment and to stand against the plots of occult societies, who seek to enslave you and steal your essence.

We invite you to cross the threshold of fantasy in order to discover the hidden side of our everyday universe. Here you will discover the underlying reality which has been hidden for millennia, you will see behind the scenes and reveal the canvas under the paint. You will discover a twilight world where alchemists labor over their alchemical ovens, kabbalists obsessively trace their pentacles, and magicians struggle to decipher their grimoires for the hidden spells within. This world is concealed behind the respectable façade of wealthy neighborhoods, non-profit associations, flourishing businesses, and historical monuments -- which seem to be completely open to public scrutiny.

But this is a world of secrets. Secret societies wage unseen wars against the Nephilim and one another for control of the magic fields and, ultimately, for world mastey. From this world of mastery, magic, and the occult come your characters: the Nephilim.

2 comments:

Konsumterra said...

It's a cross between highlander and a golden dawn manual from 1900 and chaosium BRP. Some distictivly french occult stuff. All a bit esoteric and im bored with 120 year old newage "ocult" stuff in comics too. Alan Moore, Grant Morrison and most of the UK/vertigo lines full of it.

Anthony Simeone said...

This is one of the game books that came into my hands at one point and then left at some point. I held onto it for a while, read it a bit, then sold it on eBay. Never looked back...just didn't do it for me.

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