Nephilim

The rulebook for the first edition of Nephilim. The atmosphere of Nephilim is based, as most role plays take place in a contemporary context, on a resumption of the known history. However, this one presents an unusual coherence and precision: everything is done so that each historical event, whatever its antiquity and its frame, can be taken again in an extremely concrete way from the point of view of the game. In fact, the various guides, and in particular those addressed to the GM, are very dense, going as far as to make certain passages laborious to understand.

The concept of the game is therefore resolutely focused on the past. Some knowledge of the times is essential, especially since they reveal, in the context of the game, an unknown aspect of humanity. For example, the trial of the Knights Templar is approached differently than the one we know, even if the background of the events remains the same (the involvement of Philippe le Bel has taken place, but is justified in a complex way). This divergent version of the story is called Invisible History.

The game system itself plays little role in the course of a game. This one is based on a modified Basic Roleplaying, implying a variable difficulty, partially left to the arbitration of the GM. The third edition of the game introduced, among other things, rules to popularize the game by bringing it closer to existing standards (including very specific rules of combat and conduct); however, these are regularly criticized by purists of the game, finding them useless.