The game Nephilim has got very complicated rules for character generation. At first glance it might just look like a system with many die rolls, but this only partly explaines why the system is complicated. The feature that seems to bother most GMs and players alike is that the system demands that players make a lot of choices while making their characters. Now involving players by having them make choices is not a bad thing, by far (and this system does not reduce the number of choices). What bothered me was the fact that players had to read a whole lot before being able to make good choices. It is this aspect that this system sets out to remedy.
All aspects of character generation not covered in this set of rules should be done as in basic Nephilim. In this system there are four important aspects to each past life: What status did you simulicra have when you awoke? How experienced was it in the ways of the world? How long did the incarnation last? And how much resources did you manage to collect during your lifetime?
To create a past life you rank the aspects from 1st to 4th (and last). The higher you rank an aspect the more you get in it. Note, every life is different and you can change your ranking from past life to past life.
Your simulacrum's status is very important in deciding what skills your body had when you awoke. The skills in the nephilim game is divided into four categories corresponding to the ranks. A character can learn skills from the category corresponding to his rank and all skills from the ranks below. With rank 2 in Status one can learn skills from rank 2, 3 and 4.
| Rank | Sample occupations |
| 1 | High Priest, Lord, Magi, Perfecti |
| 2 | Priest, Scholar, Knight, Philosopher |
| 3 | Merchant, Soldier, Monk, Warrior |
| 4 | Crafter, Servant, Farmer, Slave |
| Rank | Skills |
| 1 | Medicine, Hermetic Lore, Kabbalistic Lore, Speak (foreign languages), Write (foreign languages) |
| 2 | Astronomy, History, Law, Astrological Lore, Natural Lore, Battle, Research, Religion, Write (second language), Tarot Lore, Submachine Gun, Heavy Weapons, Machine Gun |
| 3 | Art, Buisiness, Melee, Pilot, Write (native language), Ride, Speak (second language), Handgun, Rifle |
| 4 | Kick, Listen, Scan, Scrutinize, Survival, Swim, Bargain, Climb, Conceal, Farming, Fist/punch, Hide, Hunt, Shotgun |
Other Skills
There are a number of modern skills that don't fit into this table. In
recent past lives the GM should decide availability according to character
concept. The values given here are only guidlines:
Anthropology
(2), Archeology (2), Biology (3), Chemistry (3), Computer use (3),
Electronics (3), Geology (3), Pharmacy (2), Physics (2), Psychology
(2)
The age of your simulacrum is important in determining how skilled it was when you awoke. In these rules the skill points are grouped for ease and speed. You may total the skill points and devide them to your liking if you wish. But as in the core rules, no skill may be raised over 50% in one life, and not over 90% during the course of character developement. The Nephilim's skill in its native language is based on the age of it's body. It get a skill equal to the highest number in the age variation in Speak (native language(s))
| Rank | Age | Skill points |
| 1 | 60-80 yrs | 50/50/40/40/40/30/30/30 |
| 2 | 40-60 yrs | 50/40/40/40/30/30/30 |
| 3 | 30-40 yrs | 50/40/40/30/30/30 |
| 4 | 20-30 yrs | 50/40/40/30/30 |
How long an incarnation lasts decides how much occult knowledge the nephilim managed to accquire. These points can be spent on occult skills. Note that this wil be in addition to any points spent on these skills earlier.
A Nephilim's Life Experience skill is based on how long it was incarnated. The skill equals the number of years the incarnation lasted. For instance if a Nephilim give incarnation time second priority, it wil get a Life Experience skill of 60.
| Rank | Years Incarnated | Occult points |
| 1 | 70 yrs | 160 |
| 2 | 60 yrs | 130 |
| 3 | 50 yrs | 100 |
| 4 | 25 yrs | 70 |
This aspect of character generation decides what worldly goods that have survived the ravages of time. This table does not give a Nephilim immediate access to these items; it still have to go back to where it once lived and track them down. Only the player know what remenants it can find, the Nephilim only knows that there is a good chance that there are treasures and a general knowledge of how and where to find it. Neither the player nor the Nephilim know in what condition, or in whose hands the items can be found. Encourage your players to come up with information about their resources. Adventure ideas should be obvious to most GMs.
| Rank | Resources (pick one) |
| 1 | Large Cult, Large Treasure (Pot 15/+5), Enchanted Ritual Paraphernalia (4d3), Powerful Athanor (2d6), Occult Library (Pot 10/+5) |
| 2 | Minor Cult, Athanor (1d6), Enchanted Ritual Paraphernalia (2d3), Treasure (Pot 13/+3), Occult Library (Pot 5/+3) |
| 3 | Athanor (1d4), Treasure (Pot 10/+1), Ritual Paraphernalia (1d3) |
| 4 | Nothing |