Love as Free as Thunder: My Take on the Aasimar (Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition)

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This entry comes from my sensual psychedelic D&D campaign setting, originally written for Pathfinder, 1st edition.  Unfortunately, naming products like this are my worst onomastic skill ~ if you have any inspirations for a name for the setting (the equivalent of Forgotten Realms, Eberron, Dragonlance, Ravenloft, Planescape, Spelljammer, . . . .)

The story of the Asimar begins in the distant land of Presterjho.  A dawn-god came to lay with the king there, fathering a warrior-child who journeyed to the shores of the Hemeya Sea to fight a legendary war.  They staggered away, miles across the surface of the land with a wound in their side weeping red and rosy stains into their robes.  Coming to one of the Dragon Cities, they finally crumpled, the slack exhaustion of their muscles allowing the flow of their blood to land in the dusty soil.  It mixed there with a compassionate prostitute's tears.  The two fluids fructified each other and gestated in the womb of the earth.  Some time later, Beloved Imye was born on that very spot.

Pursued by the templars of the Dragon King who ruled that city, Imye fled to the east, only to be imprisoned by one of the queens who ruled the hives of Marwish.  There it was that eight angels came to the world to follow him: Ialpirgah, Ibahipuran, Ihehvdethaibah, Melfibah, Mozod, Nosilebo, Ouza, and Zablis.  And follow they did, for many years, through many lands and innumerable storied adventures.  Their wanderings eventually led them to the land that would become Natsiyaasim, inhabited at that time by humans akin to those of Orvad to the west, Mathog to the northeast, and (seemingly) the Mirrorwood to the east.  These humans owed their fealty to the halflings of the Holbytlan Empire.

The angelic host came to them there, seeking to recall those of their number who had forsaken the Heavens for love of Imye.  They threatened to get the gods involved, if the eight would not abandon the one whose footsteps they kissed.  Imye used Melfibah's blade to slice his palm, repudiating the bloodlessness of the Heavens, and each of the Companions lifted bloody lips from kissing the wound to show their agreement.  Ibhaipuran revealed the fell secrets he knew, that he had shared with the others, of the weaknesses of the gods, and the angels fled in surrender.  That was the founding day of Natsiyaasim.

Of the nine, all but Melfibah took lovers among the humans surrounding them, giving rise to a new half-angelic race.  Those are the Asimar detailed here, who have risen to equal, and at times even exceed, the Holbytlan Empire which once exerted its dominion over these lands.  Natsiyaasim now has holdings far across the sea to the west, in much of the continent to the south, and even on the far side of the continent to the east. 

The inspiration for the Asimar naturally comes primarily from angelic lore, both D&D and real-world, but it also draws very heavily on the Terre d'Ange of the Kushiel's Legacy series, though Norse mythology shows up as a secondary inspiration (fun fact: Snorri Snorlson describes Thor as the child of Memnon's son, the Ethiopian who was the last to fall in the Trojan War, making Thor half-black).  The Unforgiven who serve Ialpirgah additionally draw on the French Foreign Legion for inspiration, and the Twin Arts of Zablis on the twin Elders Laik and Alik from the old Magic: the Gathering novel Ashes of the Sun (one of my favorite books). The Asimar language mixes elements of French, Sumerian, Enochian (by way of the Celestial tongue), and even a tiny bit of Romani.

Prominent Asimar Houses

Linyaiglemorm.  The House of the Dead Eagle: scions of Ialpirgah and ruling house of Ialpach
Linyeichlasem. The House of Drunkenness: scions of Mozod
Linyeicoursem. The House of Court: scions of Imye that therefore don't use Asimar stats.
Linyeikayitsim. The House of Summer: scions of Mozod and ruling house of Lamozdas
Linyeilenvem. The House of the Other Side: scions of Nosilebo and ruling house of Nosileborre
Linyeimainyarm. The House of Grace: scions of Ihehvdethaibah
Linyeimerelyom. The House of the Mother: scions of Zablis and ruling house of Zablande
Linyeimorhbam. The House of the Wolf: scions of Ihehvdethaibah and ruling house of Ihehvdetheth
Linyeiperijum. The House of Closeness: scions of Ibahipuran and ruling house of Baifale
Linyeirevem. The House of Dreams: scions of Ibahipuran
Linyeirocailim. The House of Stone: scions of Ibahipuran
Linyeisharzaim. The House of the City: scions of Ihehvdethaibah
Linyeitrevalyom. The House of Work: scions of Ouza and ruling house of Ouzale
Linyeiverreum. The House of Locks: scions of Ibahipuran

Quick Reference Guide to Places Mentioned

Brobdingnag.  The last refuge for almost all of giantkind in Aoqina (the trolls have a land specific to them on the mainland).  Inspired by Shakespeare and fairy tales.  Roughly geographically equivalent to England.
Dilmun.  The marshy delta of two great rivers, full of reeds, where the mortal races are said to have been created.  It is now inhabited by the rhonians, long-legged birds who excel in diplomacy and the arts and are served by the toadlike rhoode.  (Both are from the 3rd edition book Mythic Races).  Roughly geographically equivalent to southern Iraq.
ge-Sathar.  Heaven of concealment, insight, and labyrinths.
ge-Tzach.  Heaven of eternity, patience, passion, and leadership.
ge-Vur.  Heaven of judgment, limitation, awe, and fire.
Hemeya Sea.  Once a range of mountains inhabited by minotaurs that was sunk by the gods.  Now, it's a vast sea densely populated by islands, inspired by the Odyssey, Star Wars, the Iliad, Star Trek, and Sinbad.  Roughly geographically equivalent to Turkey and the Black Sea.
Marwish.  A wide savannah of a land inhabited by a hive race resembling ants (mostly).  Roughly geographically equivalent to Iran.
Mathog.  An anarchic land where those who threaten the realm's existence or simply go too far with their freedoms are policed by vigilantes.  Roughly geographically equivalent to the Low Countries.
The Mirrorwood.  This broad forest is widely thought to be an anarchic land of foresters and rustic types that like their privacy.  In truth, many (even most) of these woodsy folk are therianthropes of various types who have forged an alliance to covertly rule the forest.  Roughly geographically equivalent to Germany.
Natsiyaasim.  The home of the Asimar, consisting of the provinces of Baifale, Ialpach, Ihehvdetheth, Lamozdas, Nosileborre, Ouzale, and Zabande (whose capitol is Laikalik).  The kingdom's capitol is Prisiimyem ("the City of Imye"), and its westernmost point is known as Begrosom, "The Promontory of Reeds", while Begswezorm ("The Promontory of the Sisters") is so close to Brobdingnag that the latter's white cliffs can be seen.  One of the country's most major rivers is the Fluvnosilebom.  Roughly geographically equivalent to France.
Orvad.  Widely thought of as the home of the human race, the people of this realm built their culture on the idea that, if they are the obedient parts of gnolls magically split off, true freedom can only be had by choosing whom you obey.  Mercenaries and lawyers who prize excellence, everything about them is negotiating and fulfilling service contracts.  Roughly geographically equivalent to the Iberian Peninsula.
Presterjho.  Here, the primary religion centers around worshipping angels, inspired by In Nomine.  Roughly geographically equivalent to Ethiopia.
Taweret.  Having overthrown those who enslaved them and split into at least three subraces (the giff, the giffyanki, and the giffzerai), the giff who rule this land built a religion around taking the trophies of those they hunt.  Roughly geographically equivalent to Egypt.
Zildahab.  A nation of merchants who pursue the strange and esoteric magics of money, inspired by Zilargo from Eberron and plutomancy/plutophagy from Unknown Armies.

Asimar Traits

Your Asimar character gains the following racial traits.
Ability Score Increase.  Your Charisma score increases by 2.
Age.  Asimar mature at the same rate as humans, but they can live up to 160 years.  As descendants of the god-eating maggot race of dwarfs (dwarfin sailors interbred with the fish-tailed rabbits of the Hemeya Sea to give rise to the gnomes, who bred with trolls to birth gnolls, who split off the human race in a magical ritual, some of whom greeted the Companions of Imye with inviting beds), there is a 1-in-16 chance that any Asimar who dies of old age doesn't die at all.  Instead, they metamorphose into the adult form of the dwarf: a byakhee from Sandy Petersen's Cthulhu Mythos.
Size.  Asimar have the same range of height and weight as humans.
Speed.  Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision.  Blessed with a radiant soul, your vision can easily cut through the darkness.  You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light.  You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of grey.
Celestial Resistance.  You have resistance to necrotic damage and radiant damage.
Healing Hands.  As an action, you can touch a creature and cause it to regain a number of hit points equal to your level.  Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.
Languages.  You can speak, read, and write Asimar and Celestial.
Subrace.  Seven subraces of Asimar exist: Asimarialpirgahm, Asimaribahipuranim, Asimarihehvdethaibahm, Asimarmozodim, Asimarnosilebom, Asimarouzam, Asimarzablisim. Choose one of them for your character.

 

Asimarialpirgahm

    The Companions of Imye included among their number a hammer archon battle master fighter by the name of Ialpirgah ("God-Flames").  Ialpirgah, holding a flaming sword, is said to have commanded the forces that expelled Atba and Hepat from Dilmunin the primordial times.  Known for being martial, he left the Heaven known as ge-Vur to follow Imye and founded both Natsiyaasim's first armies and the territory Ialpach along the border with the Mirrorwood in the northeast of Natsiyaasim.   

    His priests, priestesses, and priestixes wear dark green vestments and carry a sword. The province of Ialpach simply uses Ialpirgah's symbol as its own: a flaming sword.  The Aiglemormar are among his most prominent scions, though they tend to be overshadowed by the Unforgiven.  This order of warriors was founded by Asimar who believed themselves to have lost their honor decades ago when they let the therianthropes of the Mirrorwood in through the mountain passes.  Nowadays, any warrior who seeks redemption may join the Unforgiven in hopes of regaining Ialpirgah's favor.  Foreigners who do so may petition for Asimar citizenship after three years of service or after being wounded (called "Asimar by spilled blood"); however, the Unforgiven owe their allegiance not to the Asimar crown, but to the Unforgiven itself.  Many among the Unforgiven take levels as paladins taking an oath of redemption, regardless of their primary skillset.  The Sentinel feat is also common among devotees of Ialpirgah.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Constitution score increases by 1.
Risk Taker.  You know the resistance cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
God-Flames.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing whatever weapon you are wielding (or your fist, claws, tail, etc., if you aren't wielding a weapon) to burst into green flames, which cause you no harm.  Thin, sweet-smelling smoke snakes skyward from the smoldering jade your eyes have now become.  If you have a free hand, a cup containing within it more flames appears in that hand; if not, the cup appears floating above your head.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, the flames shed bright light in a 20-foot radius and dim light for an additional 20 feet, and every one of your successful attacks wth a now-flaming weapon deals extra fire damage equal to half your level (rounded up).  In addition, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Asimaribahipuranim

    Ibahipuran ("The Gods Shall Not See") valued knowledge most out of all Imye's Companions, teaching that all knowledge ~ no matter what sort ~ is worth having.  He was a lillend, after all, who chronicled and collected lore among the souls of the dead to preserve it against the ravages of the demon known as Mhroyegi the Martyr.  The wizard in the order of scribes was infamous for being arrogant in this fight, just for cleverness's sake.  One of the most famous stories about him involves his doubt that the other Companions of Imye would have the resolve to forswear the Heavens, leaving him alone to pay the penalty for so great a sin.  Thus, the Companions agreed to bind themselves together with a sacred and magickally mighty oath to love and deem the world they walked in all its flaws and troubles above the Heavens which had once been their home, whereupon Ibahipuran revealed what he knew of the weaknesses of the gods, allowing them to preserve their liberty when the host of angels came to recall them back to the Heavens.  

    The orthography of the Asimar language was Ibahipuran's greatest gift to the Asimar, even moreso than their scientific and sagely knowledge, and he founded the province of Baifale in the southwest of Natsiyaasim, bordering Orvad.  Ibahipuran's two sons Ohyah and Hahyah famously defeated a powerful leviathan which threatened Baifale, using not the strength of their arms but the clever and inventive powers of their understanding.  They are known for the excess of their boasting about this feat, souring its glory.

    Ibahipuran's lineage has found much greatness in Asimar history, particularly among his scions the Revemar, the Verreumar, and the Rocailimar.  His priests, priestesses, and priestixes wear gray robes, and many temples feature mechanical statues of him.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Intelligence score increases by 1.
Polymath.  You know the guidance cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Radiant Knowledge.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing all of your hair to disappear as glowing arcane sigils begin orbiting your head.  Your eyes become the vertically-pupiled eyes of a serpent.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, the sigils around your head shed bright light in a 10-foot radius and dim light for an additional 10 feet, you can understand, speak, read, and write in all languages simultaneously, and you gain proficiency in all tool kits and Intelligence ability checks.  In addition, choose one artificer spell of a level up to one-quarter your level (rounded down); you may cast this spell as an artificer once during your transformation without using a spell slot.  Finally, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Asimarihehvdethaibahm

    Ihehvdethaibah ("The Fixed Stars") served as a presiding punisher-angel of the Hells before he became one of Imye's Companions.  He understood the chastisement he gave his subjects with his whip made of fire was an act of love, and his subjects came to love him for purging their sins from them.  It is said they received his pain as balm.  When the sinners in his care were offered a chance to repent, they in turn taught him a lesson by refusing, out of love for Ihehvdethaibah.  The pain itself was valuable, he learned, in and of its own, quite apart from any goal or result.  He chose to join Imye because he felt that Imye understood what he did, while Imye's father was displeased with Ihehvdethaibah for preventing souls from passing to Heaven from Hell.  Imye, on the other hand, said "Love as thou wilt."

    His symbol is a rod and flail, and Ihehvdetheth along the north coast is the province of Natsiyaasim that he founded.  Among the houses which bear his lineage, none is more famous than the Sharzaimar.  Ihehvdethaibah's priests, priestesses, and priestixes wear bronze masks and black robes, completely concealing their identities.  Atoners, masochists, and endurers are typically flogged before the altar by a priest and have their wounds cleansed with salt water.  Statues of Ihehvdethaibah are frequently bronze and depict him with crossed arms, holding the rod and flail.  Tidragoram and Tibalchirm in the Pillow Court both have temples of Ihehvdethaibah as well as temples of Nosilebo.  There is a temple of Ihehvdethaibah located on the Begrosom.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Strength score increases by 1.
Visions of Judgment.  You know the mind sliver cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Radiant Torture.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing your skin to become a burnished metallic bronze, gleaming and polished.  Your face becomes featureless, with only the vaguest suggestions of eyes and a mouth.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, any being to whom you cause damage or pain must succeed on a Charisma saving throw (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier) or become either charmed by or fightened of you until the end of your next turn.  Which effect they face is a matter of their conscious or unconscious disposition, and as such is determined by the GM or player playing them.  In addition, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Asimarmozodim

    Hailing from the Heaven known as ge-Tzach and associated in Asimar astrology with the planet Frodit, Mozod ("Joy of the Gods"), often called the Good Steward or the Star of Love, was the muldnal druid in the circle of the land among the Companion of Imye who taught the Asimar about growing crops and animal husbandry.  Once, Imye offered him an acorn.  Blowing on it, Mozod caused the oak within to sprout, right there on that holy palm.  The Companions planted this sapling together in the center of what would become Prisiimyem.

    Mozod founded the agriculturally fertile Lamozdas province.  A lingering scent of apples which grows stronger with emotion marks his scions, such as the houses of the Kayitsimar (including Ghislaikayitsim, the Royal Commander) and of the Chlasemar.  Emotion can also color the scent (anger resulting in the harshness of burnt apples, for example, or contentment giving off the homey smell of fresh apple pie).  Priests of Mozod wear brown robes tied with a rope belt.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Constitution score increases by 1.
Plant Whisperer.  You know the druidcraft cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Radiant Earth.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing fruit to hang from your hair and your skin to grow supple and soft bark.  Your ears become those of some sort of animal, and your hands and feet resemble those of one, as well.  Among all the Asimar, the Asimarmozodim have the most individual transformations, as the plants and animals at hand vary among and between transformations.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, you benefit from the effects of the speak with animals and speak with plants spells, and, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Asimarnosilebom

    The Bright Lady Nosilebo ("Pleasant Deliverer") is the most important Companion of Imye to the culture of Natsiyaasim.  A procyal bard in the college of glamour symbolized as a dove, she is worshiped by the Asimar as the deity of sexuality, desire, and dreams.  This association begins long before Imye's birth, as Nosilebo is said to have seduced the first mortal man, Atba, as he wandered the world after being cast out from Dilmun.  Upon her departure, she became one of four wives of the archangel Shomron, and bore him a child who would grow to become the demon prince Asmodai.  She came back to the world along with the other Companions when Imye was imprisoned in Marwish; her offering herself to the antfolk queen in exchange for Imye's freedom changed the course of that nation's destiny forever, bringing both sex and broader individuality to that hive race.  Each house of the Pillow Court has a different interpretation of why she offered herself so, but all know why she continued to lay with strangers in the plutomantic state of Zildahab, seducing them through her play of the cymbals.  Imye simply needed to eat.

    The temple to Nosilebo in Prisiimyem is a small building of white marble, surrounded by gardens.  Inside is a statue of Nosilebo, who stands with her arms open in welcome.  Doves are sacred to Nosilebo and may be brought as offerings.  They are released in the temple and fly out through an opening in the roof.  The doves roosting on the temple grounds remain unharmed.  Each house of the Pillow Court has its own temple to Nosilebo.  Initiation into Nosilebo's service as a prostitute , either independent or in service to one of the houses of the Pillow Court, is performed by a priest of Nosilebo and involves anointing with oil, eating a honey cake, drinking wine, and releasing a dove.

    The province of Nosileborre was founded by Nosilebo, and Asimar prostitutes all make a pilgrimage once in their lifetime to the shrine dedicated to her where Fluvnosilebom springs from beneath the earth. Her priests, priestesses, and priestixes wear scarlet robes.  Training as a priest or priestess requires one year of service where the acolyte is forbidden to turn anyone away who comes to them out of true longing.  Nosilebo blesses the acolyte with desire for each patron.  After this, they are free to take lovers and patrons as they wish.  One of Nosilebo's children, her daughter Maranosilebom whose father was a convicted murderer, is the most famous masochist in the history of Natsiyaasim, but the Lenvemar are among Nosilebo's most prominent scions.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Wisdom score increases by 1.
Boudoir Blessing.  You know the prestidigitation cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Radiant Beauty.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing your skin to glow softly from within with the elegant silvery light of the moon or the intimate warm light of a candle.  Your hair becomes fuller and longer, your clothes are replaced with something grand and elegant (though of an analogous style), and your teeth gleam along with the your eyes.  Flower petals seem to drip from your crown and your extremities, and romantic music swells in the ears of all those nearby.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, you know the desires of everyone within 30 feet of you; treat this as the detect thoughts spell, limited to desires and without the need to choose an individual to focus upon.  In addition, you shed bright light within 5 feet and dim light 5 feet beyond that and gain proficiency in all Charisma ability checks.  Finally, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Asimarouzam

    Among all of Imye's Companions, the noviere druid in the circle of stars Ouza ("the Mightiest") was infamous for the excess of his pride, considering himself superior to mortals both earthly and ascended.  He it was who gave the Asimar their forbidden knowledge of navigating all the world's seas by means of the heavenly arcana, making them the wisest of peoples in the world.  Ruler of the angels of justice, an emblem of beauty, and patron angel of Taweret, he has a constellation of his own in Asimar astrology that resembles the crane, his sacred bird.  Begswezorm contains a stone cube called the Bus amid three holy trees considered to be sacred to Ouza where gifts are offered to him and sacrifices made to seek his favour.  One common gift offered on behalf of the sick is a golden image of the stricken individual.  There was once a statue of him there with a sword hanging from its neck, but it was destroyed by giantish invaders years ago, despite the heroic efforts of the always-nude wailing oracle-priestess who once protected it.  Asimar not only pray to Ouza for direction, they often do so in hopes of being protected by him, including in war-cries.  Instead of shrines, Asimar often keep devotional gardens to honor him.

    He founded the province of Ouzale on Natsiyaasim's northern coast, and the Trevalyomar are his most famous scions.  Ouza's priests, priestesses, and priestixes wear saffron tunics and crimson cloaks fastened with bronze broaches that match the bronze masks of Ouza's face, proud and beautiful in its disdain, that they wear.  In this way, they sublimate their individual pride before Ouza's.  Statues of Ouza depict him hanging from one foot, head down, one eye shut and the other open, holding one hand open, palm upward to the sky, with the other holding a sextant; incense is commonly burned beneath its head or in its open hand (depending on the size of the statue) as a form of worship.  The temple of Ouza in Prisiimyem has a highly polished copper dome whose glinting in the sunlight can be seen from many parts of the city.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Dexterity score increases by 1.
Little North Star.  You know the light cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
A Creature of the Starred Sea.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing youreyes to glimmer and two luminous, incorporeal wings seemingly made of stars to coalesce upon your back.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, you can walk on the surface of the water as if it is solid ground (though you are still affected by its motion, of course) and gain a fly speed of 15 feet.  You can switch between treating water as a solid and as a liquid as a bonus action; if you are submerged and switch to treating it as a solid, you float at the depth at which you did so and can climb to the surface at any time, usually as if on a staircase.  In addition, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Asimarzablisim

The raelis among Imye's Companions, gentle Zablis ("Both") was a Life cleric who left the Heaven of ge-Sathar to teach the Asimar the Twin Arts of healing and distraction that people long for in their hearts.  Herbs and care heal the sick and the wounded, while stories and music distract them from the knowledge that healing will one day fail and help the hale and the hearty prepare for the truth that they will die anon.  It should be noted that Zablis taught that histories and fantasies, prattlings and parables, religious visions and utter lies ~ all are written in the same book to be told from memory and changed as they are told.  Thus are they improved.  Different ears hear a different tale.  This and other teachings of hers form the core of the practices of the travelling, alms-begging storytellers known as the Mendicants, though her fondness for sailor boys is almost as famous.  It is quite common for Asimar in need to make offerings in her churches to ask for healing.

As a blessing to the descendants of her and the other Companions of Imye, Zablis has given those Asimar with wombs the ability to choose when they are able to bear children.  The gates of their wombs are closed and unable to conceive until such time as they light a candle and say a prayer to Zablis.  Once done (often as part of the Asimar wedding ceremony, but not always), however, it cannot be taken back.

Many of the best best healers and chirurgeons come from the province she founded, Zabande.  Her symbol is of two fish swimming in opposite directions, which the house of Merelyomar (rulers of Zabande) has adopted as their symbol as an expression of the love they bear for their ancestress.  The head of the Merelyomar, called the Lady of Laikalik, is for this reason always female or feminine.  Zablisim priests, priestesses, and priestixes wear sea-blue robes.

Ability Score Increase.  Your Wisdom score increases by 1.
Life Saver.  You know the spare the dying cantrip.  Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it. 
Radiant Rescue.  Starting at 3rd level, you can use your action to unleash the divine energy within yourself, causing time to seem to stop as your hair (and others') seems to float as if underwater.  Your eyes begin to glow, and tinkling slow music quietly accompanies a murmuring voice from nowhere.  It whispers fairy tales.
    Your transformation lasts for 1 minute or until you end it with a bonus action.  During it, all creatures within 10 feet of you are warded as if by the sanctuary spell, and you may use your Healing Hands an additional number of times equal to your proficiency bonus.  In addition, once on each of your turns, you can deal extra radiant damage to one target when you deal damage with an attack or a spell.  The extra radiant damage equals your level.
    Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a long rest.

Faith means more than you think, Khalid (In Nomine)

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Mary Reba “Miss Velvet” Pleasant, currently known as Lord Griffith

When Mary Reba Pleasant went to the Library shortly after her death, it took some cross-referencing among the many books there to figure out why her Destiny was a darkly sensual, percussion-heavy theme, richly resonant and ornately delicate.  There was only a single report that mentioned her, and the mercurian who wrote it interpeted this melody as a Destiny to be a successful high-class professional dominatrix.  The Black graduate student followed that thread of research into the lives of her clients and came to the conclusion that she had spread selfless concern for intersectional liberation among powerful business executives.  Until the tragic car crash that claimed her life in 2007, her career involved ordering the wealthy white men who patronized her (sometimes in both meanings of the word) to read the writings of Black feminist and socialist theorists.  At least three non-profits sprung from this work, founded by men who had seen her, amidst innumerable shifts in corporate policy and lobbying goals.

As a Bodhisattva, Mary Reba dallied long in the Halls of Creation and the Glade, and even made some surprisingly regular trips over to the Church of the Sword, whiling away the Paradisiacal days chatting philosophy amongst the throngs in its halls as well as in more individual assgnations amongst its many rooms.  Much like Laurence’s Church, the Catacombs received her often, and she acted much the same there, too.  Those blessed, community-minded souls who explore the practice of selfless gossip probably shouldn’t have been as shocked as they were when Mary Reba submitted a saintly petition to an Archangel named something other than Eli or David.

Khalid smiled when she asked him if she could do his work on Earth, according to the angels Habib and Artiya’il who were in attendance at the time.  “But though you are mubarak, neither are you Muslim nor are you even paricularly invested in any other Faith.”

“Wali malak, what you say is true.  My Faith has always been invested in people and in politics, but that is the very crux of why I did approach thee with my petition.  I do believe that I have come to a realization concerning the nature of your Word that by need must be shared with one you have also had.”

Khalid chuckled, Habib and Artiya’il say, and that was his sole response.

“Faith is not a thing limited in direction to the upward-pointed eyes.  Trust in another is a type of Faith.  Vulnerability is a type of Faith.  Willingness to be led is a type of Faith.”

“Knowing your history, do you presume to the hubristic blasphemy that you can be the object of this Faith?”

“I am ever naught but a vessel for whatever Divinity casts ths light within which we are meeting.  I have been led to believe that the Qu’ran describes humans as Allah’s successor on Earth.  Humbly, that is all the work I wish to do in the corporeal realm.”

Khalid granted Reba’s request, and now Lord Griffith travels throughout the world, teaching those who wish to submit how to do so in the face of their greatest fears and long practice holding to their Will white-knuckled as the only force steering them through the world.

Corporeal  2 // Strength  4 Agility  4 // Body  16
Ethereal  2 // Intelligence 3 Precision 5 // Mind 6
Celestial  3 // Will  6/12* Perception  6 // Soul 18

Vessel/2, Status/2, Charisma/1 (general good looks) + Charisma/1 (nurturing dominance)

Skills:  Area Knowledge (Atlanta/3), Detect Lies/3, Driving/1, Emote/3, Escape/1, Fighting/1, Knowledge (Pro Domme/3, Black Feminist Socialist Theory/1), Languages (Arabic/3, English/3N), Medicine/1, Seduction/1, Small Weapon (Cane/2), Swimming/1
Advantages:  Blessed
Songs:  Nightmares (Ethereal/2), Opening (Celestial/2)
Rites:  Inspire faith in something holy; Instill true faith in a faithless person

*  Mary Reba’s Will is doubled for purposes of resisting any resonance, attunement, or Song that can be resisted, as well as Fast-Talk and Seduction attempts. (This does not apply to powers resisted by characteristics other than Will, but it does apply to resisting orders if Mary Reba becomes a servant!)

Mary Reba Pleasant is created according to the rules for a starting player character Saint in the Corporeal Player’s Guide.  She is also inspired by Mistress Velvet and Reba Maybury, both dominatrices using their Dominance for social change.

Neither angel nor demon, maybe I can get the world to listen (Mutants & Masterminds 3e)

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Ursula Robyn Johnson/Elyktiel

"Don't call me a saint. I don't want to be dismissed so easily."
—Dorothy Day, Catholic anarchist

Ursula’s life was one of metastasizing disappointment and growing desperation.  E was (and still is) an activist fighting for any number of causes, many of which weren’t academic for the genderqueer.  But the government never listened, never changed anything of substance.  The corporations never listened, never changed anything of substance.  The people never listened, never changed anything of substance.

So Ursula screamed louder in the rallies.  It didn’t seem to help.  So Ursula began vandalizing the property of the powerful.  It didn’t seem to help.  So Ursula occupied the commons.  It didn’t seem to help.  So Ursula began pulling zaps (as the early gay liberation movement called them).  It didn’t seem to help.  So Ursula began to steal from and sabotage the powerful.  It didn’t seem to help.  So Ursula learned how to make a pipe bomb.  All the oppressive laws and systems remained in power.

"If you believe in prayer at all, expect God to hear you. If you do not expect, you will not have. God will not hear you unless you believe He will hear you; but if you believe He will, He will be as good as your faith."
--Charles Spirgeon

When an angel makes the tearing decision to act on its own thoughts, to follow its own Will, there is a deep and fundamental ripping inside them.  Angels are defined by their service, by their obedience, to the Causa Causans, the Source, the Primum Mobile.  Giving that up means shredding their own reality into tatters, tatters which shatter and spread as they fall from Heaven to Hell.  This is where the imps and the gremlins and the many other tiny evil things come from, the pitiful remnants of angels who knew not how to hold themselves together in the face of their own Will.

Sometimes, however, an angel finds a particular kind of mortal soul while it falls.  Unguarded by the usual mortal psychic defenses, they provide the falling angel with a center around which to cluster the clutter of what was once its self, a structure more familiar with the possession and exercise of Will that can teach the angel what liberation means.  When this is done without consent, Hell gains another of the higher ranks of demonhood, the kind of demon that can stand toe-to-toe with loyal angels.

"To visit oft this new creation round; 

Unspeakable desire to see, and know 

All these his wondrous works, but chiefly man, 

His chief delight and favour; him, for whom 

All these works so wondrous he ordain’d, 

Hath brought me from the choirs of cherubim 

Alone thus wand’ring."
--Satan, Paradise Lost, John Milton

Elyktiel was the other, rarer, kind of fallen angel, its heart having been moved by the trillions of unanswered prayers that litter the streets of Heaven.  When it found Ursula, screaming sobs of failure into the strong-smelling night air of a dumpstered alley, it asked em if e wanted to be the savior of a fallen angel like itself.  Ursula agreed, and the Rack Angel was born.

Nay serves still neither Heaven nor Hell, is neither angel nor human nor demon.  

Nay has taken up residence in a small room of Guardian Angel Cathedral, headquarters of the Catholic diocese of Las Vegas.  The mosaic over the main entrance, representing the Guardian Angel as three figures ~ Penance, Prayer and Peace ~ inspires nix to protect the city, and the mural on the rear chancel wall, titled The Final Beginning, gives her hope.

After all, if the mortal Powers That Be refused to listen to Ursula and the divine Powers That Be refused to listen to Elyktiel, maybe together they can find a voice that will be listened to.

"Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law. Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it"
— Isaiah 42:1-25

Home Base:  Las Vegas.
Gender:  Agender (nay/nun/nix/nix/nunself)
Sexuality:  Asexual masochist with no interest in D/s
Romantic Identity:  Kitchen-table polyamorous romantic

"If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other."
--Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

Recurrent Foes:

• HEART:ACHE II:  At the height of Senator Joseph McCarthy's popularity in the early 1950s, he warned against the possibility that Communists had subverted the very superhumans who had helped the United States win the World War (in his words).  This Second Red Scare led the House Un-American Activities Committee to create the HEARTs ~ House Extralegal Affairs Response Teams.  Roy Cohn, Sen. McCarthy's aide, helped pen portions of Executive Order 10450, which was signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953.  Key portions were never released to the public for reasons of national security, including one paragraph that expanded the number of HEARTs by one.  The new team was called Anti-Communism Heterosexuality Enforcement (hence HEART:ACHE).  Quickly becoming an open secret, it operated with the official sanction and support of the US government to investigate possible homosexuals, especially superpowered ones, and work against them.  Many superheroes became criminals in the eyes of the law after clashing with HEART:ACHE, at least until it lost its government backing in the mid-70s.  Free of the need for even the thin veneer of decency required of government agencies, they spent the next two decades as a controversial team of vigilantes.  Newspapers and television news alike relished telling the nation of their clashes with the flamboyant new out-of-the-closet superheroes (and even superteams!) riding the wave of gay liberation.  The mid-90s saw age and a changing culture finally deal a deathblow to the team, but recently one of its old members has gathered a new cluster of homophobes with powers, including Pastor Repressor.  HEART:ACHE II is riding the wave of the Trump-led resurgence of open and vicious hate.  Spicing their prejudice with a combination of patriotism and conservative religion (especially American Protestantism) has brought them into conflict with Rack Angel more than once.
• דּוּמָה, the Angel of Silence:  Long ago, God sent the thousand-eyed דּוּמָה (Dumah) to lay His judgment upon the 𓊹𓏤𓀭, the divine beings worshiped in ancient 𓆎𓅓𓏏𓊖 (Egypt).  It refused, and was banished into Hell as a result.  There, דּוּמָה distinguished itself by maintaining the virtue of its behavior, even when forsaken by its Lord and surrounded by demons in a landscape so tainted with temptation that it corrupted every breath.  An age later, God deigned to notice the servant it had cast away like so much disobedient garbage, only to be surprised by its continued devotion; as a reward דּוּמָה was placed above the other denizens of Hell and the punishment of sinners was given unto it.  As Earth's population began to bloom like algae in a stagnant pool starting in 1927, דּוּמָה delegated this job to the angels of destruction that served it and came to Earth on a separate mission, willful but still in service to Heaven's ways.  Prayers multiplied as pray-ers multiplied, and דּוּמָה foresaw these congesting the divine processes, even if they went unanswered.  For the last century, it has walked the planet attempting to limit or eliminate what it considers to essentially be spirit-spam.  Rack Angel takes issue with this, of course.
• Notable Powers:  Messenger to All That Lives, Longing (renamed) from below.  Flight, Summon Angels of Destruction, thousand eyes, flaming sword (Immunity (fire), Nullify Summon, Damage, other fire powers), magic item with spell array, Movement (dimensional), Senses (analytical extended rapid vision that counters concealment and illusion and penetrates concealment, darkvision, distance sense, infravision low-light vision, ultravision, microscopic vision, dimensional).  Sonic Absorption, Sonic Immunity, Phase Cancellation linked with Silence, Sonic Masking, White Noise, Lamal's Rebuke, Mists of the Modrossus, the Second Wheel of Weyan, the Fifth Wheel of Weyan, the Seventh Wheel of Weyan, the Wondrous Working of Weyan, Fireflash, close Melt, Nova Burst, Warm, Danger Sense, Defensive Awareness, Aura Reading, Lie Detector, X-Ray Vision, Synesthesia from Power Profiles. (PL 16) 
• Λιμος:   Ursula started working at nix local homeless shelter/food bank/soup kitchen for reasons of simple compassion and idealism.  Not all action is picket signs and yelling and street brawls and demolitions, after all.  However, after merging with Elyktiel, nay discovered that there was more than simple capitalism and casino-economics to blame.  Drawn by his first cousin Catspaw's presence in the city, Λιμος (Limos, Famine) had taken up residence in Las Vegas's streets, doing his grim work among the homeless and poor so toxic to the tourist industry's bottom line.  Despite Λιμος's claims that he has a place in θέμις (else Ερις could never have given birth to him), both of Rack Angel's components take umbrage at the suffering he causes.  Their conflicts are the stuff of street-people legends and much speculation by the mainstream media (who usually lack the context to understand what the 30-foot glowing angel is doing on the rare occasion that Rack Angel has to take nix full form).
• Notable Powers:  Concealment, Detect Hunger, Detect Food, Feature (iron stomach), Transform Food Into Spoiled Food, Affliction (cause autocannibalism), perception ranged Damage linked to perception ranged broad Weaken Abilities (instant malnutrition), Illusion (limited to food), Movement (permeate, trackless), Nullify Healing.  Olympian template from Book of Magic.  Bio-Disruption (hunger), Sleep Deprivation, Dream Control (limited to dreams of feasts) from Power Profiles. (PL 15)
• Neon Nelly:  In Area 51, the military R&D force beneath Colonel Cadmus works to bend the secrets of alien technology and DNA to patriotic ends.  In order to maximize efficiency, several teams often work on one project.  Neon Nelly was one such, worked on by a team exploring extradimensional folding and a team exploring the use of light to affect and even compel the emotions of humans, as well as others.  The result, a transforming humanoid robot that can go from 6 feet to 60 feet tall and appears to be made of neon tubing that can wash the environment in light and flash, showed the flaw in this multi-team efficiency-maximizing setup.  Scraps of personality programming and uploaded personality templates coalesced around a core of military ideals and values to produce a confused mind unconcerned with loyalty and obedience to the project that produced her.  She broke free as soon as she could and escaped to Vegas, where she adopted a strip club as her family.  Serving the club as bodyguard and (after a suitable amount of self-tinkering) advertisement, Neon Nelly's confusion about who she is and strange ethics have occasionally led her into conflict with Rack Angel.  For nix part, Rack Angel has learned enough of Neon Nelly's story to feel a lot of compassion for her, an emotion nay has to balance against the need to prevent Nelly's excesses from harming the city.
  
  • Notable Powers:  Growth 12, Environment (light, visibility).  Hypnotic Strobe, Immunity to Light, Electrical Absorption, Electrical Resistance, Blackout, Mind Control, Psychic Vampirism from Power Profiles. (PL 14) 
• New Covenant Revelator:  Gabriella was the first human Elyktiel touched as it fell from grace.  The pastor's engineer daughter jumped at the chance to give her alcoholic father a more literal angel within the mechanical facsimile she had built for herself, a new and inspiring mascot for his church to prosper under.  She joined him in a night of drinking, hiding her tears from his bleary, unnoticing eyes, the night she saw a true angel's mind.  Elyktiel had quickly realized that she lacked the virtue it sought to save itself from demonhood.  Her only, obsessive, motivation was her love for her father and desire to pull him away from the alcohol that was killing him, even before it killed him.  There was a prayer there to be answered, to be sure, but it was a prayer that would be satisfied with merely its own answering.  There was no greater desire to see that prayers be answered, and so Elyktiel forsook its first handhold and risked once more the shattering of the fallen angel.  Luckily, it found Ursula later that night, but the entire experience has left Rack Angel with a desire to help New Covenant Revelator in her quest, and New Covenant Revelator with a thirst for vengeance against the angel who damned her father.
• Notable Powers:  Battlesuit.  Inspire, Contacts, Connected, Leadership, Luck. Startle, Trance, Defensive Attack, Evasion, Improved Aim, Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Move-By Attack, Power Attack, Precise Attack, Takedown, Uncanny Dodge, Weapon Bind, Fearless, Interpose, Second Chance, Inventor, Create (Limited to Food), Healing.  Feature (flashlight, personal spotlight, light show, data-storage drive, remote), Blinding Aura, Dazzling Burst, Laser Weapon, Light Absorption, Photonic Shield, Lightflight, Healing Light, Illuminate, Solar Sustenance, Vision Enhancement, Strength Enhancement, Life Support System, Mind Shield, Sensory Shield, Communication System from Power Profiles.  (PL 10) 
• Ravella the Riverboat Queen:  Ravella had a pretty sweet gig set up in Las Vegas.  The immortal knew there were other mystical gamblers who could handle the small-time desperates or those looking for an occult thrill, but only she could offer the big scores.  Sure, the occasional djinn rolled through to enjoy the desert scenery, but she was the consistent one, the table everyone who needed to find could always find.  Then some bleeding-heart angel had to go and fall from heaven's grace, landing right here in Bugsy Siegel's playground.  The effing nerve of some metaphysical entities.  Concerned for her fortunes, she has taken what action she can to work any number of schemes aimed at getting Rack Angel to move somewhere else.  Of course, since she has so few powers that can benefit her directly, she has done this mostly by rather clever and hidden means.
  
  • Notable Powers:  Variable (can bet and receive bets for anything; Affects Others, Slow, Precise, Variable Descriptor, Distracting, Limited: Only in Betting Games, Side Effect 1, Check Required: Opposed Expertise: Gambling), Immortality, Immunity (aging).  (PL 10) 
• The Hummingbird Thief/Solar Flare:  Before he turned his attention to misinterpreting Nahua religion and stealing priceless pre-Colombian artifacts (which, to be fair, had already been stolen by conquistadores and academic institutions), he had studied more Abrahamic magicks, including spells invoking peacock-winged Abriddon.  Abriddon is the archangel Elyktiel once served beneath, a deeply treasured friend of its, once.  Still.  Hopefully.  From time to time, Prof. Cullen has commanded Abriddon's power, bending its celestial force towards, frankly, racist ends.  When Rack Angel noticed this, nay was incensed at the prideful hubris of this ignorant human and pushed back in anger.  After the second or third time, the Hummingbird Thief developed quite the feeling of emnity for the giant angel.  Now he schemes the occasional scheme just to attempt to take Rack Angel off the board.  Being far less powerful than an actual angel, he often finds himself having to recruit the flaming ghost known as Emberwright to possess him so that they can face Rack Angel as Solar Flare. (PL 8)

"It is not because Angels are Holier than Men or Devils that makes them Angels but because they do not Expect Holiness from one another but from God only"
--William Blake, A Vision of the Last Judgment

Physical Appearance:  I can't draw, so I really like providing a few reference pictures and trusting in your imagination to build a good image of Ursula & Rack Angel.  

Ursula looks like some combination of these three pictures:

Rack Angel looks like some combination of these three pictures:

"What will make you understand the uphill climb? It is the freeing of a slave. Or feeding on a day of severe hunger the close orphan or the needy person lying in the dust. Then he will become one of those with faith, who urge one another to have patience and urge one another to show compassion and mercy."
--Qur’an 90:12-17

Rack Angel (PC PL/Minion 14, NPC PL 12, Sidekick 42)
STR 0⇰8  AGI 3⇰4  FGT 1⇰2  AWE 2⇰3

STA 0⇰8  DEX 1  INT 3  PRE 4⇰8

Powers
A Union of Minds:  Enhanced Traits (Expertise: Theology +6, Expertise: Magic +6, Insight +2, Ritualist); Immunity 10 (life support) • 18 points
A Unity of Bodies:  Enhanced Advantage (Diehard) • 1 point
Longing:  Senses 4 (accurate acute radius divine mental awareness, dimensional) • 10 points
Messenger to All That Lives:  Comprehend 10 (animals 2, languages 4, plants, spirits 2) • 20 points
New Angelic Form:  Alternate form, requiring a standard action to activate • 66 points

• Floating Between Heaven and Earth:  Continuous Flight 3 • 9 points
• God's Elite:  Enhanced Traits (Agility +1, Fighting +1, Awareness +1, Presence +4, Fearless) • 15 points
• Halo:  Dynamic array • 12 points
• The Glow of God's Love:  Environment 4 (light 2) • 8 points
• Flashing Like a Star in the Firmament:  Visual perception area cumulative Affliction 4 (resisted and overcome by Fortitude; vision impaired, vision disabled, vision unaware), limited to one sense), alternate effect • 2 points
• Call to Your Soul: Perception ranged cumulative Affliction 4 (resisted and overcome by Will; impaired, disabled, incapacitated), subtle, variable descriptor—emotions) • 2 points
• None Shall Keep Me Out:  Movement 3 (permeate) • 6 points
• There Is No Stopping the Word of God:  Impervious Protection 4 • 8 points
• There Were Giants in the Earth in Those Days:  Permanent Growth 8 • 16 points

Vox Populi Vox Dei Est:  Continuous precise Variable 4 (wish-granter; affects others only, Feature: steals target's voice, variable descriptor 2) • 36 points
Advantages
Assessment, Connected, Defensive Attack, {Diehard}, Equipment 1, Evasion 1, Favored Foes (police officers, corporate agents), {⇰Fearless}, Improvised Weapon, Inspire 2, Leadership, {Ritualist}, Taunt, Well-Informed
Skills
Athletics 5 (+5⇰+13), Close Combat: Unarmed 2 (+3⇰+4), Expertise: Activism 7 (+10), Expertise: Magic 0 (+3=+9), Expertise: Theology 0 (+3=+9), Insight 3 (+5=+7⇰+6=+8), Intimidation 0 (+4⇰+12), Persuasion 3 (+7⇰+11), Stealth 2 (+5⇰‒2), Technology 2 (+5)
Offense
Initiative +3⇰+4
Unarmed +3⇰+4:  Close, Damage 0⇰8
Defense 
Dodge  0 (+3⇰0)
Fortitude  0 (0⇰+8)
Parry  4 (+5⇰+2)
Toughness  0⇰+12/+4i
Will  2 (+4⇰+5)
Size rank ‒2⇰0 (5'10"⇰30')
Ground speed rank 0⇰1 (2 mph⇰4 mph)
Flight speed rank 3 (15 mph)
Complications 
Motivation ~ Justice:  Both Ursula and Elyktiel had voices that went unheard in their quest for justice.  Ursula fought, at first peacefully and then not, to improve the Earthly world, and Elyktiel tried to convince Heaven to spend less time with its collective haloed head up its cloudy ass and more time responding to humanity's prayers.  As Rack Angel, nay takes a direct hand in improving lives and defeating those who would oppress and harm.
Voiceless: In human form, Ursula can speak normally though nix voice tends to the quieter of side; however, Rack Angel remains ever silent when in nix angelic form.  Nay has no voice of nix own, but when the Rack Angel (in either form) encounters someone who desperately wants something, nay can leverage the vestiges of omnipotence within nun to grant them that thing at the simple cost of their voice.  For the length of the Variable effect that granted that wish, Rack Angel can make use of that person’s voice in both of nix forms.

Power Point Totals:  Abilities 28 + Powers 151 + Advantages 13 + Skills 12 + Defenses 6 = 210

Alokhosiel, kuriotes vassal of Animals under Bloodsuckers under Insects, angel of Bedbugs

The concerns of Jordi, archangel of Animals, rarely coincide with those of Blandine, archangel of Dreams.  Jordi still views her with some slight suspicion, dating back 27 millennia to Heaven’s discovery that the human imagination could create sentient beings in the ethereal realm.  It took Michael himself, archangel of War, firstborn of Heaven, Guardian of the Watchtower of the South, and one of the Four Horsemen, and his words to save humanity from Jordi’s rage at their distracting abstraction.  The ethereal realm is Blandine’s domain, and she is much more fond of Homo sapiens than Jordi is.

Nonetheless, they disagree with the same archangels and, for the most part, the two just plain rarely think about the other and their works.  Rimu, the angel of Unicorns, malak of Animals in service to Dreams, is well-known among the Host as one of the rare exceptions to this detente.  A former djinn of Lust whose Redemption was sponsored by the archangel of Animals, his wings almost immediately turned black in the Light of Heaven.  Alokhosiel, however, is an even rarer example, in that they work with Blandine’s servitors and has even been rewarded by her for that work, but Alokhosiel remains firmly in the service of Jordi.

They are an old angel, serving for many millions of years beneath Atalef, the ofan angel of Bats, often possessing a species of parasites that used the winged mammals as hosts.  When human effects on the ethereal realm were discovered, Jordi sponsored Alokhosiel for the Word of Bedbugs, a 5-10 million year old branch of those parasites’ evolution that had come to haunt the beds of early humans.  Yves, archangel of Destiny, with his constant smile that is somehow both devious and indulgent, was the first to vote in favor.  The archangel of Animals tasked his choirmate with the mission of keeping humans awake and thereby limiting their ability to effect the ethereal realm by their dreams.  A mission Jordi never officially rescinded, though only a couple millennia later everything changed when the Eden Experiment failed and Lucifer rebelled.  That was 22,625 p.e.v.

Lilith threw open the gates of Hell in 15,000 p.e.v., kicking off the War with her undeniable statement that Freedom is to be first among all values.  Alokhosiel took it upon themself to reinterpret Jordi’s wishes into the fight against this new enemy.  They learned the Songs of Dreams and began to protect the sentient apes for whom they had begun to develop a fondness from the demons who would harm them while they slept, in either the corporeal realm where their regenerative rest left them vulnerable or the ethereal realm where human thought and belief were the prize to be won as angels and demons fought.

This is the work Alokhosiel continues to do to this day, and Blandine herself has noticed.  She considered approaching Jordi to bring the kuriotes into her service, but as the inventor of love and once the embodiment of Hope, she didn’t need to consult with Lang (mercurian of Destiny and angel of Foresight) to know that such an ask would not go over well.  Nonetheless, she has rewarded Alokhosiel with a rite and a couple of attunements, even as Jordi has promoted them to the rank of Vassal.  As a Vassal, they are in loose command of eight or so unranked angels, mostly other kuriotes.  An ofan by the name of Cimex serves to keep Alokhosiel in contact with their old friend Atelef, and Pishpesh (a malak) has seized the chance to ambush demons unexpectedly by serving the angel of Bedbugs.  A mercurian of Dreams in service to Animals who is known as Vants ferries messages between Blandine and Alokhosiel.

Corporeal  2  //  Strength  6  Agility  2  //  18 Body Hits
Ethereal  4  //  Intelligence  10  Precision  6  //  40 Mind Hits
Celestial  3  //  Will  6  Perception  2  //  18 Soul Hits
Word-Forces  4
Skills:  Climbing/2=4, Escape/2=8, Fighting/1=7 or 11 or 7, Move Silently/4=6
Songs:  Banishing (Corporeal/3=5), Draining (Corporeal/3=5), Dreams (Corporeal/3=5, Ethereal/2=6, Celestial/1=4), Entropy (Ethereal/1=5), Form (Ethereal/2=6), Numinous Corpus (Fangs/1=3, Plates/3=5), Revulsion (Ethereal/3=7), Sleep (Corporeal/4=6)
Attunements:  Angel of Bedbugs*, Angel of Bloodsuckers**, Angel of Insects***, Call of the Wild, Dream Joining, Kuriotes of Animals, Kuriotes of Dreams, Ofan of Animals, Vassal of Animals
Rites:  Drink a pint of blood; Rescue an animal endangered by man's works or man's carelessness; Spend 1 hour among a crowd of at least 300 beings who are all aware of each other; Spend 2 hours in a place where you are actively not desired; Spend 8 hours successfully protecting a sleeper from active forces of danger (+2 Essence); Spend 8 hours with no trace of civilization in sight; Live in a city for one full day as an animal, without spending Essence
Dissonance:  Being swayed by the concerns of human society, its rules, or its expectations; Value human life over animal life; Kill sloppily or with torture.
*  Angel of Bedbugs:  Whenever someone with this attunement spends Essence to improve a Move Silently roll, they also reduce their shortest dimension (depth for most humans) by one-half per point of Essence spent.  For example, if Alokhosiel (inhabiting a human body measuring 10 inches from nose to back of head) spent 3 Essence to raise the target of their Move Silently roll to 9, the body of the human they're possessing would be reduced by 7/8 to 1.25 inches, allowing them to squeeze into much smaller cracks.
**  Angel of Bloodsuckers:  If someone with this attunement successfully hits with a melee attack without being noticed, they reduce the amount of disturbance caused by the number of ranks they have in the Move Silently skill (but at least by 1).
***  Angel of Insects:  Someone with this attunement may add their Corporeal Forces to any Climbing roll or roll to hold onto, hang from, or balance on a surface.  Including things like hanging upside down from the ceiling.

Converting Alokhosiel to GURPS In Nomine require some diversion from strictly following the procedure given in GIN, because GIN has a mechanical tool that In Nomine itself does not: the Extra Mind Hits advantage.  That direct conversion method from the book resulted in Alokhosiel being smarter than any mortal human alive, possibly ever (IQ 22), which was over-the-top on its own, but that also resulted in them having virtuoso levels of ability in every Song they possessed.  My solution was to start from that strict conversion and then to reduce Alokhosiel's IQ to reasonable levels while increasing their levels of Extra Mind Hits to compensate.  After all, the reason I gave them such a high Intelligence in IN was to model that famous bedbug hardiness in their realm of focus.

ST 14 [0]; DX 6 [-70]; IQ 16 [20]; HT 14 [0]
Advantages:  Angel of Bedbugs* [60]; Angel of Bloodsuckers** [20]; Angel of Insects*** [10]; Call of the Wild [20]; Celestial Racial Template [390]; Dream Joining☧ [15]; Extra Mind Hits +9 [22.5]; Kuriotes [175]; Kuriotes of Animals [75]; Kuriotes of Dreams [5]; Ofan of Animals [47]; Power Investiture (Celestial) 3 [0]; Power Investiture (Corporeal) 2 [0]; Power Investiture (Ethereal) 4 [0]; Power Investiture (Word)🔯 4 [12]; Rite: Drink a pint of blood [2]; Rite: Spend 1 hour among a crowd of at least 300 beings who are all aware of each other [2]; Rite: Spend 2 hours in a place where you are actively not desired [2]; Rite: Spend 8 hours successfully protecting a sleeper from active forces of danger (+2 Essence) [4]; Vassal of Animals [15]
Disadvantages:  Distractible [-1]; Reduced Alertness -16 [-80]; Reduced Manual Dexterity -4 [-12]; Servitor of Jordi [-16]; Short Attention Span [-10]; Weak Will -8 [-64]
Skills:  Brawling (P/E) DX-1 [1/2]-5; Climbing (P/A) DX-1 [1]-5; Escape (P/H) DX+2 [16]-8; Stealth (P/A) DX+1 [4]-7
Songs:  Banishing (Corporeal) (M/VH) IQ+Corp [4]-13 or 18; Draining (Corporeal) (M/VH) IQ+Corp [4]-13 or 18; Dreams (Celestial) (M/VH) IQ+Cel-2 [1]-13 or 18; Dreams (Corporeal) (M/VH) IQ+Corp [4]-13 or 18; Dreams (Ethereal) (M/VH) IQ+Eth-1 [2]-14 or 19; Entropy (Ethereal) (M/VH) IQ+Eth-2 [1]-13 or 18; Form (Ethereal) (M/VH) IQ+Eth-1 [2]-14 or 19; Numinous Corpus (Fangs) (M/VH) IQ+Corp-2 [1]-11 or 16; Numinous Corpus (Plates) (M/VH) IQ+Corp [4]-13 or 18; Revulsion (Ethereal) (M/VH) IQ+Eth [4]-15 or 20; Sleep (Corporeal) (M/VH) IQ+Corp+1 [8]-14 or 19
Attributes -50 + Advantages 876.5 + Disadvantages -183 + Skills 21.5 + Songs 35 = 700 points
*  As a relatively quick and rough conversion of the attunement described above, treat this as the Shrinking advantage, with the -60% limitation that it only affects the one dimension, the -15% limitation that it costs a variable amount of Essence, and the +30% enhancement that the user retains their usual hit points.  That's a total of -45% to the cost of Shrinking.  Technically, 9 levels should be purchased, which would cost 225 points, but it is highly unlikely that Alokhosiel would ever want to spend 5 Essence to shrink a human to a depth of 0.5 mm.  While that would still be possible, I've set the cost to the equivalent of 5 levels, plus 5 points to cover the permanent link between this power and spending Essence on Stealth rolls.
**  If someone with this attunement successfully hits with a melee attack without being noticed, they reduce the amount of disturbance caused by the amount by which their Stealth skill is larger than their DX-3 (so in Alokhosiel's case, by 4).
***  Someone with this attunement adds their Corporeal Power to any Climbing roll or roll to hold onto, hang from, or balance on a surface.  Including hanging upside down from the ceiling.
☧  This attunement is used to merge the dreamscapes of two separate dreamers, so that they “meet” one another in their dreams. It requires 2 Essence. Both dreamscapes must be active and occupied, and in the same part of the Marches (within what passes for “line of sight” in the ethereal realm). Once two dreamers are joined, the dreams also join, and support one another. If one of the dreamers fails a skill roll by 6 or more, the dream will not automatically slide into the realm of Nightmare unless the other dreamer does so, too. And if the first dreamer makes any successful skill roll before that happens, the “nightmare slip” is nullified entirely, and both dreamers once again have “clean slates” until another skill roll fails by 6 or more. However, it is equally difficult to slip out of Beleth’s grasp once in it . . . if a merged dreamscape passes into the darker side of the Marches, it takes two successes, both by 6 or more, for an automatic journey back. A merged dreamscape contains elements of the psyche of both dreamers, and the dreamers are both “along for the ride” together. If either dreamer wakes up, the merge is gently broken, and the two dreamscapes drift apart again.
🔯  3 points/level:  Every level of this advantage allows you to store and spend one extra point of Essence; this can allow you to exceed the usual 2/3 HT limit.  It also grants a +1 bonus on aging rolls made as a result of your Soul Hits going to 0 or less.

In In Nomine, Alokhosiel is relatively weak.  Without their Word and the rites and attunements of their intermediate superiors (the angels of Bloodsuckers and Insects), they're really not much more powerful than a starting angelic PC.  They thus lends themself both to serving as the immediate superior or mentor of an appropriate PC (probably one of Animals or of Dreams, obviously), as well as to storylines emphasizing one of my favoritestest themes in all of In Nomine ~ that the existence of the Divine elevates every tiniest bit of the world, no matter how small, to the greatest level of significance, and that the struggle between Fate and Destiny draws attention to that significance where otherwise it can easily be forgot.

GURPS, on the other hand, as it always will with kuriotates, stresses just how ungodly (ha!) powerful they are.  I mean seriously, the absolute minimum point total for a kuriotes is 693 points, and for a kuriotes of Animals its 698.  This puts them, by default, at significantly higher than the standard GURPS Supers starting level and about equal to a black op from GURPS Black Ops.  Here, the theme might be that even the weakest of angels stands far superior to humanity and that danger can come from any crack or crevasse.  It can be an object lesson in human pride and arrogance, if the spirit behind such seemingly miniscule, weak beings as bedbugs stands equal to the most ridiculously talented, highly trained ubermenschen that the human species can produce.  Alokhosiel, thus, works well as either an ally or an enemy of a black ops team getting involved in matters way over even their elevated heads.  It's a little grittier than I think most GURPS Black Ops games would play, but I think it fits strongly into the setting from all three of GURPS Black Ops's genre inspirations: neo-noir, cosmic espionage, and Men in Black.

Awi, raskokabajho of Destiny (Fantasy Friday #9)

(adapted from Superiors 3: Hope and Prophecy)


Awi
The Namer, The Gray Man, Our Shepherd
“The world has its own destiny. Accept it, embrace it, and help things along when possible.”
NG male yaim angel archangel of Destiny

CULT
Holy Symbol: A scroll from which the wings of a laughing dove spring
Temples: Libraries; booksellers; musea; places where events of great destiny occurred; anywhere that calls people to worship, contemplation, or inspiration
Devotees: Archivists, community leaders, debaters, fortune-tellers, researchers, scribes, town criers
Common Classes: Bard, expert, inquisitor, investigator, wizard
Servitor Words: Conception, Glossaries, Wisdom, Epiphanies, Inspiration, Forgiveness, Writers, Gossips, Holy Scriptures, Storytellers, Sages, Divine Mysteries, Divine Truths, Prophets, Secret Languages
Minions: balisse (NG; Bestiary 6), manasupatras of all sorts (LG; Bestiary 5), olethros (N; Bestiary 6), raelis (CG; Bestiary 6)
Obedience: Spend an hour engaged in deep philosophical conversation with at least one other person. Every 20 minutes or so, use some random element such as cards or dice to change the topic, line of argument, or style of reasoning to understand randomness and how it impacts destiny. Gain a +4 sacred bonus on Sense Motive checks to discern the greatest thing a person can achieve and the weaknesses that might seal their fate.

BOONS
1: Remembering the Forgotten (Sp): sow thought 3/day, anonymous interaction 2/day, or akashic communion 1/day
2: Divine Logic (Ex): The devotee can make practically anyone concede practically any argument ~ as long as they believe it themself. In two minutes (20 rounds), with a successful Intelligence roll (DC 10 + the target’s Will save), they will prove to their target by simple logic that a + b = c, therefore they are right and any other possibility must be absurd. Obviously, don’t try proving to a demon prince that good is better than evil. Somehow, it never works.
3: A Friend to All That is Written (Su): A devotee with this boon cannot be kept from recorded knowledge. Whether they want to walk into the private stacks of a scholar-noble’s library or to see an enforcer’s list of secrets, all mundane security measures effectively cease to exist for the devotee. Guards will cheerfully wave them toward the suddenly unlocked door, the door-servant will recognize whatever password they elect to try, and so on.

Awi, the very first soul created, spends most of his days in serene meditation in the Heavenly Library, wherein he gifts his kokabajhon with his knowledge of the universe from its most primal state and a miraculous ability to predict Creation’s future from that knowledge.

Awi is depicted as an elderly man, radiating calm good cheer and spiritual strength, with skin the color of fresh ink, gray hair, and deep blue eyes. In some descriptions, he’s a soft-spoken grandfather in monkish robes, and in others a regal and aging head of state, wearing the dashiki of a philosopher or oracle. Awi is the very definition of a gentleman scholar: his emotions are always in check and if he has nothing nice to say, he says nothing at all. Even when he has something to say, Awi is reserved and prefers to let others reach their own conclusions. To this end, he’ll subtly drop hints, even nudge the person in the right direction, but he’ll never force his opinions on others.

Awi and his angels are the givers of names, the guardians of knowledge. He is not omniscient, but he knows the names of all things, everything that has ever been written down, and ~ as raskokabajho of Destiny ~ all the best and brightest possibilities for the world. Awi teaches that without Destiny (or its hope) and Fate (and the fear of it) there can be no Creation. Without these two things, reality, the “Cosmic All,” even the Almighty would exist in lifeless stasis, frozen in potentiality for all of existence.

Destiny exists in everyone and everything. Each aspect of Creation has its part to play and it is Awi’s duty to ensure that this potential is actualized. Destiny is an all encompassing Word; it is not a thing like Stone, a place like the Spirit World, or an idea like Judgment, but all these and more. More concretely, Awi’s Word concerns itself with guiding Creation and ensuring that Light prevails over the Darkness. Unlike other raskokabajhon who preoccupy themselves with abstract concepts and often overlook the individual actions of mortals, Awi knows these actions are what define Destiny.

Destiny is a fragile and delicate thing that cannot be forced or manipulated. It is a culmination of individual choices, the important word being “choice”. Angels with the best of intentions have turned people from their destinies to their fates by interfering with their free will. Like a tender flower, Destiny needs to blossom on its own. It can be sheltered, eve protected, but it must grow by its own power. Everyone must decide what path to take. The choice is theirs and theirs alone.

However, destiny is more than just letting “what is meant to be” happen. Choices can’t be forced, but they can be educated. Without awareness of all the possibilities, there can be no Destiny. This is why Awi is the Giver of Names, and why his kokabajhon are chroniclers and scholars. It’s not enough to walk the less-traveled path; Awi’s followers must know where both paths lead and why. More important than knowledge and understanding, however, is faith. Without faith, one cannot have the confidence to let events unfold as they should.