Tags

, , ,

Black Death

The Black Death

“The world is a disease, I am the cure.”

Note: I will be drawing heavily from an older writeup of Makatiel that I consider quite good. 

Makatiel came into being while Heaven was pure and the Symphony had only just finished the Overture. Politics and rebellion were the furthest thing from anyone’s mind – or at least from the mind of an Elohite of Animals. This was the age when Jordi was in his prime. The world belonged to him, to Novalis, and maybe to Eli.

And Makatiel did enjoy the Symphony. He would lounge about in his lizard body, monitoring the savannah, listening to the Symphony, and hearing it was good.

All this was spoiled by the introduction of humans. Unlike the more sensible animals, they did not find a place for themselves within creation – they tried to change creation to make a place for themselves. It was wrong, it was discordant, it was well beyond their station. If Jordi’s Mercurians could not teach the apes their place, then surely they would be destroyed.

But then Michael stayed Jordi’s hand, declaring that humans weren’t Animals. Which was of course absurd. They weren’t plants, they weren’t stone, or fire, or water. They were meat things that were born, and ate, and shat, and died.

And then the Eden Experiment came. Three “perfect” humans placed within an idyllic garden to see if they could follow god’s will – and they failed. Makatiel was now sure that the end of humanity was coming and that he could return to a calm and ordered creation. But again justice was forestalled, this time by Yves, and only Lucifer spoke against it. So Makatiel joined Lucifer in the rebellion, and fell alongside Lucifer, and ended up on the shores of hell basking in its infernal radience, wondering how heaven could have gone so wrong, and what he could do to punish the meat things that had corrupted it.

He would occasionally consult with the other fallen, but most were so warped from their original function that he would have nothing to do with them. Instead he watched on in horror as they tore each other apart. Eventually the Morningstar settled in beside him and they spoke as they watched the carnage, and when it was done Makatiel was the Prince of Disease. His new Word gave him the perfect opportunity to show heaven it’s flaws, to afflict mankind in a manner befitting the beasts that they are.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Over time Makatiel became more obsessed with his view of the cosmos. Mankind had become an infestation, corrupting not only the corporeal realm but the celestial one as well. If the infection could not be contained, it would need to be destroyed, and all contaminated flesh along with it.

In his final years Makatiel unleashed a number of plagues – most notible the Black Death (which he piggybacked on some animals loyal to the true creation), and also a Celestial Plague, that could incapacitate any angel or demon who attempted to succor the failing man.

He was wiped out in the middle of the 14th Century by an alliance between Dominic and Asmodeus.

Dissonance Condition

It is dissonant for a servitor of Disease to promote human life, except in cases where the life of the individual can then threaten the lives of the masses.

Band Attunements

Balseraph – (partially restricted) These demons are “experts” on all things infectious. Any successful attempt to resist one of their pontifications must be re-rolled unless there was an intervention involved. Balseraph may use this attunment against people attempting to resist their resonance.

Djinn – (restricted) – The Djinn of Disease can ward their attuned from all symptoms of disease. This protection turns their attuned into plague carriers, but does not in any way reduce the virulence or transmition of the disease. The Djinn can apply or remove this ability at will unless they fail a resonance check to remove their attunement, in which case the subject of the attunement controls the ability until the connection is broken.

Note: Canon rules for Djinn of Disease appear on Liber Castellorum p126.

Calabim – Every wound one of these demons inflicts will automatically become infected. Use the disease rules from Revelations 1. Incubation is 1 day, damage is 1d-3, and the cycle is 1 month. In spite of the celestial source, this is a mundane infliction and can be cared for with standard medicine.

Habbalah – (restricted) Makatiel’s Punsihers are some of his most subtle and most effective servitors. Their resonance will never rebound when targeted against someone who is sick (or thinks they are), and can be used to convince such individuals that they deserve their illness (resisting all medical care) or that everyone around them deserves it (causing them to engage in intentionally reckless and contagious activities).

Lilim – (restricted) – Anyone who resists a Geas from one of these demons must roll again using Strength instead of Will. If they fail the strength roll they will contract a common and contagious disease. Once imposed this becomes a mundane infection. Standard medical intervention can potentially treat it or send it into remission.

Shedim – (restricted) – These demons can corrupt the body of their hosts rather than the soul (chosen at the time of entry). If the Shedite chooses corruption of the body, the host will gain 1 point of Palid per day until it has a number of ranks equal to the Shedite’s Corporeal Forces and will also take 1d-3 damage each day until it is dead or the Shedite leaves.

Impudite – (restricted) – So long as someone is sick, these Impudites may drain essence from them without first having to make a Charm roll.

Servitor Attunements

Call of the Wild – Same as Jordi’s (In Nomine p. 125)

Plague Horse – Your vessel has been afflicted with any number of mundane pathogens. They do not impact you but can afflict anyone whom you come into contact with. The exact mechanics will depend on which diseases you carry. This attunement is tied to a vessel. If you lose the vessel you will need to repurchase this attunement.

Mens Insana – Demons with this attunement can turn afflictions of the body into afflictions of the soul. It renders vessels vulnerable to disease and imposes a Stigmata that does both corporeal and celestial damage.

Distinctions

Knight of Fevers – By spending 1 essence, a Knight of Fevers can remove a mortal’s natural healing ability for 24 hours. The target may attempt to resist with Strength. One this ability is in place, bleeding will not stop on its own, Body Hits will not be restored at the end of a day of rest, and poisons and diseases cannot be resisted without artificial or supernatural intervention.

Note: Canon rules for the Knight of Plagues can be found on Liber Castellorum p126.

Captain of Contagion – Makatiel’s Captains can make mundane diseases more viruent: doubling the damage and halving the cycle of recurrence.

Baron of Plagues – Any attempt at Quarantine made in your presence will fail. You may spend 2 essence to dictate the nature of the failure.

Rites

  • Introduce a new disease to a population
  • Turn a center of healing into a vector for disease (+3)

Relations

Like most Habbilah, Makatiel views himself as an Angel, and so holds most of the Infernal Host in contempt.

Allied: No One
Associated: Andrealphus*, Baal, Beleth, Genubath, Mariel
Hostile: Asmodeus, Kobal, Lilith, Meserach
Enemies: Beelzebub

* This is a one way relationship. Makatiel likes working with Andre, but Andre loathes working with Makatiel (Hostile).

Invocation

Chance of Invocation: 2

Invocation Modifiers
+1 A rat
+2 A human plague-carrier
+3 An active quarantine zone
+4 The corpse of someone killed because they were sick
+5 Biological warfare supply cache (portable morgue for catapult counts)
+6 A city wiped out by plague

Where are they now?

Most of Makatiel’s Servitors stayed loyal to the word of Disease, which means that they have been absorbed into Saminga’s ranks. A few of the more foolish ended up with Fleurity or Andrealphus while the more ambitious can be found working for Baal, Haagenti, Kobal, and Vapula.

None of them really like to talk about the Black Death.