''Nobilis'' is a
contemporary fantasy
Contemporary fantasy, also known as modern fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy, set in the present day or, more accurately, the time period of the maker. It is perhaps most popular for its subgenre, urban fantasy.
Strictly, supernatural fiction c ...
tabletop role-playing game
A tabletop role-playing game (typically abbreviated as TRPG or TTRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a form of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech. Participa ...
created by
Jenna K. Moran, writing under the name R. Sean Borgstrom. The
player characters
A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...
are "Sovereign Powers" called ''the Nobilis''; each Noble is the
personification
Personification occurs when a thing or abstraction is represented as a person, in literature or art, as a type of anthropomorphic metaphor. The type of personification discussed here excludes passing literary effects such as "Shadows hold their b ...
of an abstract concept or class of things such as Time, Death, cars, or communication. Unlike most role-playing games, ''Nobilis''
does not use dice or other random elements to determine the outcome of characters' actions, but instead uses a point-based system for task resolution.
Setting
''Nobilis'' draws on many sources, including
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
and
Norse mythologies, but adds numerous unique details to its setting. Though the everyday world in the game appears much like our own, it is actually only the Prosaic Earth, a lie that the world told to itself in a desperate attempt to explain
suffering
Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, may be an experience of unpleasantness or aversion, possibly associated with the perception of harm or threat of harm in an individual. Suffering is the basic element that makes up the negative valence of a ...
, and a rationalized delusion which conceals the true reality that would plunge most mortals into madness: the Mythic Earth, an
animist
Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
ic world where everything has its own sentient spirit. In the Mythic, the Earth is really
flat
Flat or flats may refer to:
Architecture
* Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries
Arts and entertainment
* Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch
* Flat (soldier), ...
, and hangs somewhere among the vast boughs of the "world-tree",
Yggdrasil
Yggdrasil (from Old Norse ), in Norse cosmology, is an immense and central sacred tree. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds.
Yggdrasil is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional s ...
. Countless worlds dot the branches of this world-tree, but at the top is
Heaven
Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...
, which is inaccessible to all but the
angels
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
(only one human soul in a billion is not turned away) and is the source of all beauty. Beneath the Earth, in the roots of Yggdrasil, is
Hell
In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...
, the source of all corruption. Around Yggdrasil, except above heaven (where it is open to the stars), is a mystical impenetrable curtain of blue flames known as the Weirding Wall.
Every
class
Class or The Class may refer to:
Common uses not otherwise categorized
* Class (biology), a taxonomic rank
* Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects
* Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...
of objects and every
concept
Concepts are defined as abstract ideas. They are understood to be the fundamental building blocks of the concept behind principles, thoughts and beliefs.
They play an important role in all aspects of cognition. As such, concepts are studied by s ...
is represented by a being of god-like power known as an Imperator. Each Imperator may govern from one to several of these Estates, and has effectively limitless control over them. The Imperators are engaged in a deadly struggle with the Excrucians, terrible beings from outside the Weirding Wall who wish to destroy reality; this struggle is known as the ''Valde Bellum''. This war keeps Imperators busy in the Spirit World, so in order to maintain their affairs on Earth and in the other worlds they invest a shard of their soul in a human (or occasionally another animal or object), creating a Nobilis. Each Nobilis represents one of the Imperator's Estates; the group of Nobilis this forms, known as a ''Familia Caelestis'', is typically loyal, both to each other and their Imperator.
The Imperator Lord Entropy oversees the actions of the Nobilis and enforces the ''Code Fidelitatis'', the five laws he has established for them, in his Locust Court. The most notable and notorious of these, and the one most often broken, is the Windflower Law which states that no Noble is allowed to
love
Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...
another being. (In the first two editions, Nobilis can turn other humans into Anchors, whose every action they can control, but in order to do this they must first love or hate the person.)
To protect their physical forms from the ravages of the Valde Bellum, Imperators take a part of reality and partition it off into a self-contained, unique world which can take any form. This world, called a Chancel, both houses their physical bodies and is a spiritual reflection of it. Much like in the myth of the
Fisher King
The Fisher King is a figure in Arthurian legend, the last in a long line of British kings tasked with guarding the Holy Grail. The Fisher King is both the protector and physical embodiment of his lands, but a wound renders him incapable and hi ...
, if the Imperator suffers, so does their Chancel.
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
s have great significance to the Nobilis and their Imperators; earthly flowers are reflections of their heavenly counterparts and each has a meaning. For example, the
gamemaster
A gamemaster (GM; also known as game master, game manager, game moderator, referee, or storyteller) is a person who acts as an organizer, officiant for regarding rules, arbitrator, and moderator for a multiplayer role-playing game. They are m ...
is known as the
Hollyhock
''Alcea'' is a genus of over 80 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae, commonly known as the hollyhocks. They are native to Asia and Europe. The single species of hollyhock from the Americas, the streambank wild hollyhock, ...
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
because, in the world of ''Nobilis'', hollyhocks represent
vanity
Vanity is the excessive belief in one's own abilities or attractiveness to others. Prior to the 14th century it did not have such narcissistic undertones, and merely meant ''futility''. The related term vainglory is now often seen as an archaic s ...
and ambition. This is because, according to the in-game story, the angels used flowers as a tool to control and direct the brunt of their powers when they created Reality. Each Nobilis and Imperator has a flower that represents them, and flowers are often used in their magical rites.
Gameplay
Unlike most
role-playing game system
A role-playing game system is a set of game mechanics used in a tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) to determine the outcome of a character's in-game actions.
History
By the late 1970s, the Chaosium staff realized that Steve Perrin's ''RuneQuest ...
s, ''Nobilis'' does not use random elements in determining success in characters' actions. Instead, ''Nobilis'' uses a resource management system; players may spend
Miracle Points to succeed at certain actions, but otherwise they rarely fail at what they set out to do. Instead of the action centering on whether or not the characters succeed, the emphasis is instead on the consequences of those actions. Since combat between Nobilis uses up Miracle Points very quickly and a Nobilis can easily defeat even great numbers of humans, social roleplaying is encouraged over combat. Though the characters may seem to have limitless power, in reality they must take into consideration both the outcome of every act and what other Powers or Imperators they may offend in the process.
First and second editions
In the first two editions, each character has 4
attributes
Attribute may refer to:
* Attribute (philosophy), an extrinsic property of an object
* Attribute (research), a characteristic of an object
* Grammatical modifier, in natural languages
* Attribute (computing), a specification that defines a proper ...
: Aspect, which governs their ability to perform superhuman physical and mental acts; Domain, which covers their power over their estate; Realm, which determines how much power they have in their Chancel; and Spirit, which describes how much magical power the Nobilis has. Spirit creates the ''Auctoritas'', a shield that protects them from the Miracles of other Powers. A character's Spirit also determines how many Anchors they may have. Each attribute has a number of Miracle Points associated with it.
The
character creation
Character creation (also character generation or character design) is the process of defining a game character or other character. Typically, a character's individual strengths and weaknesses are represented by a set of statistics. Games with a ...
system also makes ''Nobilis'' notable by giving players an unusual amount of control over the setting. In addition to creating their own characters – a process which already allows for considerable customization – the players create their Imperator and Chancel. Players receive a number of points to invest in their Chancel equal to the total amount they spent on their characters' Realm; they may use these to buy special attributes for their Chancel such as special technology or magical inhabitants. They do not receive any points for their Imperator, so they must take a corresponding drawback for every special attribute they wish their Imperator to have. Each Nobilis also has an Affiliation, which is a moral code they follow in order to regain Miracle Points, as well as character flaws called Limits and Restrictions. Much like their Affiliation, these allow the character to regain Miracle Points when they become an inconvenience.
Third edition
In third edition, each character again has 4 attributes, but this time they are: Aspect, which governs their ability to perform superhuman physical and mental acts; Domain, which covers their power over the substance of their estate; Persona, which covers their power over the properties of their estate (as defined by the player); and Treasure, which governs their power over their panoply, the objects, animals and people that represent who they are. Domain governs the ''Divine Mantle'', an aura that makes it harder for hostile Miracles to overpower their own Miracles. Persona governs the ''Auctoritas Magister'', a shield that protects them from the Miracles of other Powers. Each attribute has a number of Miracle Points associated with it.
Each character also has a set of Bonds and Afflictions, the rules of their nature. Bonds are those rules which need effort to maintain; Afflictions are those rules which simply happen, without effort. When Bonds and Afflictions become an inconvenience, they allow the character to regain Miracle Points. When a Noble confronts and overcomes significant obstacles and antagonists, or honors the properties of their estate, they also regain Miracle Points.
As in earlier editions, the Imperator and Chancel are created by the players, but the point-buy system has been dropped. Instead, the players work together on deciding the properties of both.
Publication history
First edition
The first edition was printed
on demand
On-demand or on demand may refer to:
Manufacturing
* Build-on-demand
* Just-in-time manufacturing, a methodology for production
* Print on demand, printing technology and business process in which new copies of a document are not printed until an ...
by Pharos Press in 1999
with cover art by
Alphonse Mucha
Alfons Maria Mucha (; 24 July 1860 – 14 July 1939), known internationally as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech painter, illustrator and graphic artist, living in Paris during the Art Nouveau period, best known for his distinctly stylized and decorat ...
.
Second edition
In 2002 Hogshead Publishing printed the second edition.
When Hogshead Publishing shut down in 2003, the rights to the book returned to Borgstrom, but arrangements were made with
Guardians of Order
Guardians of Order was a Canadian company founded in 1996 by Mark C. MacKinnon in Guelph, Ontario. The company's business output consisted of role-playing games (RPGs). Their first game is the anime inspired ''Big Eyes, Small Mouth''. In 2006 Gua ...
to publish the second edition.
The second edition is a
coffee table-style book, the cover designed by Universal Head, with a ribbon bookmark; it is called the "Great White Book" by Nobilis fans. Full-page black and white art was commissioned for this book, in particular from
Charles Vess
Charles Vess (born June 10, 1951) is an American fantasy artist and comics artist who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator Arthur Rackham, Czech Art Nouveau pain ...
and
Michael William Kaluta
Michael William Kaluta, sometimes credited as Mike Kaluta or Michael Wm. Kaluta (born August 25, 1947), is an American comics artist and writer best known for his acclaimed 1970s adaptation of the pulp magazine hero ''The Shadow'' with writer Den ...
; Borgstrom's
flash fiction
Flash fiction is a fictional work of extreme brevity that still offers character and plot development. Identified varieties, many of them defined by word count, include the six-word story; the 280-character story (also known as " twitterature"); ...
, set in the game world, fills its large margins. This edition won the
Origins Award
The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so (for example) the 1979 aw ...
for Best Graphic Presentation Book Format Product 2002,
and the 2003
Diana Jones Award
The Diana Jones Award is an annual award for "excellence in Role-playing game, gaming". The original award was made from a burned book encased in lucite. The award is unusual in two ways: first, it is not an award for a specific class of thing, b ...
for Excellence in Gaming.
Guardians of Order ceased operations in 2006, with an announcement that they would attempt to find other publishers for their games.
The second edition of ''Nobilis'' was
translated
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...
into
French in 2002 by the
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
company
2 dés sans faces, société coopérative ("2 dice without faces, cooperative society"). Curiously, this translation was available for sale before the original
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
edition. The French edition, for reason of available space, replaced the scenario from the English language book with an original scenario, set in a media-obsessed Chancel. A
gamemaster's screen
A gamemaster's screen, also called a GM's screen, is a gaming accessory, usually made out of either cardboard or card stock, and is used by the gamemaster to hide all the relevant data related to a tabletop role-playing game session from the playe ...
, titled ''Perfidie'', was released in late 2002, with a small booklet including errata and the scenario from the English language book.
A single sourcebook was published for second edition, ''The Game of Powers'', which provides rules for
live action role-playing
A live action role-playing game (LARP) is a form of role-playing game where the participants physically portray their characters.(Tychsen et al. 2006:255) "LARPs can be viewed as forming a distinct category of RPG because of two unique feature ...
.
Attempts to publish a second sourcebook, to be entitled ''A Society of Flowers'', were unsuccessful until March 2008: part of the supplement was finally made available as a free pdf download from
Eos Press
Eos Press is an American game publisher named for the ancient Greek goddess of the dawn. It was established in 2001 in Seattle, Washington, as "Hawthornn Hobgoblynn Press". Eos has operations in Suzhou (China), Taiwan and Singapore.
History
Fi ...
or for a small fee from drivethrurpg.com, under the name ''Unlikely Flowerings''. This document was the first of an announced series of "peculiar books" that would make available the whole "work version" of ''Society of Flowers''. Then those peculiar books, completed and cleaned, would be released later in 2008 in hardcopy version.
However, the second peculiar book and ''Society of Flowers'' were delayed following personal problems of the author,
with the second peculiar book, ''Creatures, Clothed in Strangeness'', eventually seeing release in September 2009 as a free pdf download from imago.hitherby.com.
Third edition
The third edition rulebook, titled ''Field Guide to the Powers'', was published by
Eos Press
Eos Press is an American game publisher named for the ancient Greek goddess of the dawn. It was established in 2001 in Seattle, Washington, as "Hawthornn Hobgoblynn Press". Eos has operations in Suzhou (China), Taiwan and Singapore.
History
Fi ...
in 2011, as the first volume in the ''Nobilis: the Essentials'' range.
It was initially released on
PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...
, to be followed by a print version. The cover art is by Ciaoffen 师晓蒙.
In the years following the release of the second edition, Borgstrom had changed her name to Jenna Katerin Moran, and the third edition was released under that name.
In September 2012, the first sourcebook for third edition was released, named ''Nobilis: Antithesis, Minibook 1i''. It was only released through the
OneBookShelf
OneBookShelf is a digital marketplace company for both major and indie games, fiction and comics. OneBookShelf was formed by the merger of RPGNow and DriveThruRPG. The company's e-commerce platforms host content from individual sellers, indie cre ...
network (RPGNow, DriveThruRPG, etc.) in PDF and softcover print-on-demand formats.
See also
*''
Amber Diceless Roleplaying Game''
*''
Incarnations of Immortality
''Incarnations of Immortality'' is the name of an eight-book fantasy series by Piers Anthony. The books each focus on one of eight supernatural "offices" (Death, Time, Fate, War, Nature, Evil, Good, and Night) in a fictional reality and history p ...
''
References
{{Reflist
External links
Official 3rd Edition websiteat
Eos Press
Eos Press is an American game publisher named for the ancient Greek goddess of the dawn. It was established in 2001 in Seattle, Washington, as "Hawthornn Hobgoblynn Press". Eos has operations in Suzhou (China), Taiwan and Singapore.
History
Fi ...
The Nobilist a mailing list for Nobilis players
author R. Sean Borgstrom discusses the development of the second edition and ''The Game of Powers'' supplement
Official French Nobilis home pageHosted by the Swiss editor, 2 dés sans faces, société coopérative (in French).
British role-playing games
Contemporary role-playing games
Fantasy role-playing games
Hogshead Publishing games
Origins Award winners
Role-playing games introduced in 1999
Role-playing game systems