A listing of Approaches

In this post, I’m gonna explain "Approaches" and provide some lists of correspondences. When an Immortal performs an action that resonates with a Ka-element, then he may apply a bonus to that action; these were known as Meta-Characteristics in editions prior to 4e. Each Ka-element is associated with a Characteristic (1-3e), a list of Skills (4e), and an Approach (5e), as I'll explain below.

Meta-Characteristics

Characteristic associations were introduced in 1e and modified in 3e. For Nephilim and Ar-Kaïm, the associations work like so:

Ka Characteristic
Air Intelligent
Earth Endurant
Fire Strong
Moon Magnetic
Water Agile

In 1e/2e these bonuses were constant, whereas in 3e they must be deliberately activated. A Characteristic under the influence of the Pentacle is a "Meta-Characteristic." Fumbling a Meta-Characteristic test inflicts Khaiba points.

Although Ar-Kaïm have them, Solar-Ka and Saturnian-Ka aren't associated with any specific Characteristics in 3e.

Selenim

In 3e Selenim lacked any Meta-Characteristic. However, as to compensate the Selenim may curse mortals by casting the evil eye: this inflicts an equivalent penalty to one Characteristic. A Characteristic under the influence of the evil eye is "Cursed."

As a house rule for 3e, I would allow Selenim to use Meta-Magnetic based on their Initiated (Black Moon-Ka) Characteristic.

Ar-Kaïm

Ar-Kaïm use their Solar-Ka to calculate the magnitude of all Characteristic bonuses. A Characteristic under the influence of the Sun is "Exalted." As with Nephilim, a Fumble inflicts Khaiba points and loss of points from the associated Ka-element Pool. The latter risks aggravating Instability.

Fifth edition's passive bonuses

Although 5e doesn't have Characteristics—and thus no constant Meta-Characteristics—per se, the Nephilim's Ka-elements do provide some persistent passive benefits. Earth-Ka adds physical heath boxes, Fire-Ka increases damage, Water-Ka increases initiative and movement, Air-Ka increases sagacity in research, and Moon-Ka helps with going unnoticed.

Curiously, Selenim calculate all these bonuses with their Black Moon-Ka at halved value... with the exception of the bonuses from Earth-Ka and Moon-Ka.

Meta-Skills

Skill associations were introduced in 4e aka 20th anniversary edition. The bonuses apply automatically and don't need to be deliberately activated. The following lists include the Ka, the associated Skills, and examples of Specialties (i.e. sub-skills).

Air

  • Acrobatics: stunts
  • Administration: rationing, stewardship, supply, institutions
  • Dance: Carole, Minuet, ritual
  • Debate: dispute, humor, rhetoric, demonstration, proselytizing
  • History: Crusades, hagiography, myth of Hyperborea, Irish mythology, Judea
  • Interrogation: confession, Inquisition, torture, Socratic
  • Law: Anglo-Saxon, retaliation, Roman, Talmud,
  • Literature: Elizabethan theatre, mythology, religious texts, comedy or tragedy, Epics
  • Mathematics: Arithmetic or geometry, axioms
  • Perception: In the dark, surprise attacks
  • Politics: British Empire, caliphate, clans, kingdom, papal intrigues
  • Research: Antikythera Mechanism, Internet, Computer systems
  • Rifles: Arquebus, musket
  • Thrown/Projectile Weapons: Bolas or Spear, Axe, Bow or Javelin, Sling or Blow pipe

Earth

  • Architecture: Ancient Egypt, Neolithic, Romanesque or Gothic, temples
  • Blunt weapons: Club, shield
  • Botany/Zoology: Arboreal Forests or Tundra, moors or bogs
  • Climbing: climbing urban, trees
  • Empathy: fear, a feeling of your choice
  • Endurance: Torture, long Marches, Extreme Temperatures, lack of sleep
  • First Aid: medicinal berries, incantations, cuts
  • Heavy Weapons: catapults and ballista
  • Intimidation: humiliation, nobility, divine curses, disturbing appearances, Savagery
  • Orientation: constellations, maritime, tundra, urban maze, Stars
  • Riding: Dragon-effect of choice, horse
  • Sculpture/Pottery: stone, tiles, Clay, Marble
  • Survival: Desert, Fire making, Wastelands

Fire

  • Animal Handling: Elephants, Crocodiles, Horse
  • Athletics: Running, Tennis
  • Authority: Command, Occult advisor, Screams
  • Automatic Weapons: Suppressing fire, Weapon of Choice
  • Bladed weapons: Axes, swords, knives
  • Craft: mechanisms, Brick, woodworking
  • Eloquence: Charisma, Rant, Sermon
  • Explosives: black powder, Wildfire
  • Law: Rights, Legal Processes
  • Poetry: Epics
  • Strategy: Ambush, Maritime, Roman army
  • Physics/Chemistry: Quantum Physics
  • Search: Police Procedures

Moon

  • Acting: Commedia dell'arte, tragedy
  • Corruption: Patronage, bribery, indulgences
  • Conceal: Hide stuff, Camouflage
  • Disguise: masks, wigs
  • Dodge: Diving for Cover, Footwork, Unarmed combat
  • Fast talk: Benefit of the doubt, Storytelling
  • Games: Senet, Chess
  • Intrusion: Avoid Guards, Theft
  • Legerdemain: sleight of Hand, Pick pockets
  • Psychology: Vendetta, Galen of Pergamon
  • Photography: Analog, Digital, Sport, Glamour
  • Poison/Drugs: hallucinogens, plant poisons
  • Seduction: Adultery, Courtesy, Gallantry

Water

  • Biology/Medicine: Anatomy, Averroes' medical treatise
  • Etiquette: Arcanum XII, heraldry
  • Geography: cartography, British Isles Indus Valley
  • Hand guns: duels, Colt 45
  • Linguistic: Ancient Greek, Egyptian or Sumerian hieroglyphs
  • Music: harpsichord or opera, Gregorian chant
  • Negotiate: barter, commodities, precious metals
  • Painting: illuminations, tenebrism, Mannerism
  • Pilot/Drive: Vehicle type, Stunts
  • Stealth: bush or Cave, Forest
  • Swimming: Diving, Long Distance
  • Tracking: Dragon-effects of a chosen element, indigenous style
  • Unarmed Combat: Bite

Approaches

In 5e, "Approaches" were introduced for each Ka to replace the Meta-Characteristics of prior editions. These don’t apply to specific Characteristics or Skills (which 5e lacks anyway) but to actions that analogically resonate with the associated Ka, as given on the table below:

Approach of Ka…

How the action is carried out

Air

Through analysis, evaluating all consequences, in a planned way, using knowledge

Earth

Defensively, backing up, taking hits

Fire

Without subtlety, without worrying about the consequences, in a visible way, using force

Moon

By charm, trickery, deceit

Water

By circumventing the problem, by adapting to the situation, by imitating another situation, by using flexibility and adaptability

Solar-Ka

Used in opposition against all tests of social manipulation and for perception tests.

Black Moon

Relies on manipulating the target's emotions. It is not necessarily a subtle ability: fear is an emotion and intimidation is a vector like any other. When in doubt, treat its technical aspects like those of the Moon-Ka.

As you can see, it's an attempt to distill all the prior editions.

Solar-Ka

3e doesn't have a Solar Meta-Characteristic, but the Minor Arcana's Initiates are able to use their Solar-Ka to resist Spells targeting them. Immortal Initiates, if any (they exist!), are able to learn Solar Resistance too! However, Solar Resistance doesn't seem to be available elsewhere (e.g. the Quest for Al-Mugawir doesn't mention it).

In 5e Solar-Ka represents willpower and awareness. Only certain initiates of the Minor Arcana have learned to use the Solar Approach. None of 3e's rules for Immortal's using Solar-Ka or Qiyas have been adapted, not to my knowledge.

Risks

Using Meta-Characteristics or Approaches may inflict consequences.

In 1e, 2e, and 4e the bonuses are automatic and have no consequences.

In 3e a Fumble inflicts Khaiba on Nephilim and Ar-Kaïm, plus loss of Ka for Ar-Kaïm that potentially risks aggravating Instability. Selenim need to spend BMK, which they refresh by Assuaging mortals.

In 5e using an Approach increases visibility of the Metamorphosis and accrues points of Effet-Rosenkreutz (equivalent to Occult Curiosity Potential in the US version).

In my campaigns...

In my campaigns, I use a variation of the 3e rules but expand the applications as per the Approaches from 5e. In the event that the Approaches are found too broad or vague, then I refer back to the 3e Meta-Characteristics and 4e Meta-Skills for guidance. I allow Selenim to use both 3e's Curses and 5e's Black Lunar Approach. I don't allow Immortals to use the Solar Approach unless they earn it as part of a Quest.

Hope you enjoyed!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“Fixing” the setting

These posts assume that the reader is already familiar with Nephilim , so don't expect an explanation of the game here. In addition to the clunky rules, and probably more important, the Nephilim game had fluff that alienated players in the Anglosphere. The rulebook frontloaded potential players with millennia of lore that they had to keep track of. Perhaps the most criticized aspect was that the titular nephilim were presented as parasites who possessed unwilling human hosts to pursue their agendas. While players were seemingly okay with playing murderous psychopaths in other games of the 90s, apparently body-thieves just weren't kosher. The English mailing list had numerous debates over this during its heyday. Rather than rehash those here, I'll cut straight to the point: in my revision of the setting, the nephilim are fusions of a human being and a soulless mindless elemental spirit . The human soul (Sol, Solar-Ka) provides will, purpose, desire, etc. The elemental spirit...
Read more

Simplifying the rules

One of the problems with the Nephilim game was that its rules, a variant of the venerable  BRP , were overly complicated and probably not all that well suited to it. The French version eventually dropped BRP entirely starting in its third edition, and the current fifth edition uses a dramatically simplified rules system. This has inspired me to devise my own simplified rules system for the English adaptation. I'm not going to convert to Fate like certain others have tried . The task resolution system will still be BRP's roll under d100 with difficulty levels and variable results. But all the character traits will change. The standard attributes/characteristics are Air-Ka, Earth-Ka, Fire-Ka, Lunar-Ka, Solar-Ka, and Water-Ka. These represent the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of the character. For nephilim characters, these also represent supernatural aspects. Rather than distinct skills, characters are described in freeform terms and given general competence ratings....
Read more

The spiritual pentacle and the elements

Image
In this post I explain the spiritual meaning of the Nephilim’s pentacle and the Ka-elements themselves. Although linked to specific game statistics, like Fire to Strength and Moon to Charisma, all of the elements have physical, mental and spiritual correspondences and manifestations.  It’s not one or the other . You don’t have to posit different cultures all have different elements to explain varying beliefs. Real occultism isn’t supposed to be accurate in the game world anyway, but the result of information leaks and cargo cults by muggles. Liam Routt gave a good explanation in  his old FAQ : (I’m putting it between horizontal rules because blogger has issues with formatting) The Spiritual Pentagram Traditionally, the pentagram represents our spiritual, mental, emotional and physical composition: Fire Doing—Fire is energy, the power to act. But it is pure action, undirected by thought or feeling. Air Thinking—Air is thinking, ideation, mental activity, but it can...
Read more