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MAJOR

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ARCANA
BY
WRITTEN

KENNETH
HITE
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INTERIOR
ARTIST HEATHER MCKINNEY
COVER ARTWORK AND DESIGN SAM SHIRLEY
AND EDITORIALKENNETH
PROJECT HITEAND SAMSHIRLEY
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BASEDONMATERIAL
PARTIALLY BY FREDERIC WEILAND
STEPHANE ADAMIAK
GRAPHICDESIGNAND LAYOUT SHEILA RALSTON AND
KENNETH HITE
PROOFREADING SHEILARALSTON
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Chaosium Inc. 1997

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There are a number of resources, paper and electronic, which can give you additional insight into the world of
Nephilim.
THE CHAOSIUM DIGEST is an electronic digest which presents fully developed articles on all of
Chiaosium’s games, including Nephilim. You can subscribe to it by mailing appel@erzo.org.
THE NEPHILIM DIGEST is an electronic mailing list which carries discussion about all aspects of the
Nephilim game. You can subscribe to it by mailing the command ‘subscribe nephilim-digest’ to majordo-
mo @erzo.org.

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SOLEIL NOIR is a paper American Nephilim fanzine. The first issue was published in February, 1996. Issues
can be purchased by mailing Soleil Noir at: PO Box 272, Bellingham, WA, 98227-0272, USA. You can also
reach Soleil Noir via email to idyoung@seanet.com.
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ESOTERICA is a paper British Nephilim fanzine. The first issue is to be published in May, 1997. You can
receive more information on Esoterica by emailing Adam-Crossingham@ octavian.ccmai1.cornpuserve.com.
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Major Arcana i s published by CHAOSIUM INC.

Major Arcana is copyright 1997 by CHAOSIUM INC.
”The Waste Land” is copyright Faber & Faber and selections are used for purposes of illustration.
Nephilim is a registered trademark of CHAOSIUM INC.
Nephilim is licensed from MULTISIM, and is based upon their original game.
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The English language version of Nephilim has been adapted by CHAOSIUM INC.
Any similarities between characters in Major Arcana and persons living or dead are the results of a particularly close opposition of the
planet Venus, which is often mistaken for persons living or dead.
Tarot images are from the Rider-Waite tarot deck.
All original artwork is copyright 1997 by the original artists.
The reproduction of material in this book for purposes of personal or corporate profit by electronic, photographic, or other methods of
retrieval is strictly prohibited.
Address questions concerning this book as well as requests for free catalogs to:
Chaosium Inc, 950-A 56th St., Oakland, CA 94608.
You can reach Chaosium on the internet at chaosiurnQaol.com. Visit Chaosium’s WWW homepage at
http://www.sirius.com/-chaosiurn/chaosium.html.

Chaosium Publication #3108. Published May 1997. ISBN 1-56882-099-2

Printed in the United States of America
 .

1NTRODVCTlON ..................................... 4
PART 1: THf MAJORARCANA FROM A B M .............5

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Arcanum Exaltation (Table). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
PharaonicEgregors(Table) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

PART 11: T H f MAJORARCANA FROM WTHlN ........... 16

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ARCANUM 0: THE FOOL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
ARCANUM I: THE MAGICIAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Correspondences (Table). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
ARCANUM 11: THE HIGH PRIESTESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
ARCANUM 111: THE EMPRESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Emotional Natures (Box). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

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Sihu Influence (Table) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ARCANUM Iv:THE EMPEROR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Thes(Tab1es). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ARCANUM V THE HIEROPHANT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
42
44
48
51
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Additional Ku From Worship (Table). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
ARCANUM VI: THE LOVERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
ARCANUM VII: THE CHARIOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
ARCANUM VIII: STRENGTH. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
ARCANUM IX:THE HERMIT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
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ARCANUM X: THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Divination(Tab1e) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
ARCANUM XI: JUSTICE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
ARCANUM XII: THE HANGED MAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
ARCANUM XIII: THE UNNAMED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
ARCANUM XIV TEMPERANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
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ARCANUM XV: THE DEVIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Ari-Kheperu Duration (Table) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
ARCANUM XVI: THE TOWER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
ARCANUM XVII: THE STAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
ARCANUM XVIII: THE MOON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
ARCANUMX1X:THESUN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
ARCANUM XX: THE JUDGMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
ARCANUM XXI: THE WORLD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

PART 111: THf MAJORARCANA FROM WTHOVT........154

BlBLlOGRAPflY .................................... 1
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1NDfX............................................ 15~

“...the princip[e of al[ wisbom ana some of a[[ power is
containeb in twenty-two Arcana...”
-Pad Christian, The Histors of Magic
The Nephilim are fundamentally magical beings;
indeed, it is not overstating the case to say that the
Nephilim are magic itself. In accordance with the
Western Magical Tradition that they both impel and
hide behind, the Nephilim are organized into hierar-
paihs to enlightenment into 22 methods of under-
standing and approaching true illumination. e
chies of meaning. Akhenaton codified their various
Akhenaton also formed 22 tribes around these theo-
pl
ries, calling them the Arcana. Between them, the 22
Arcana contain all Nephilim wisdom and magical
insight. These tribes, and the insights they represent,
were depicted by human occultists as the Trumps in
the Tarot deck: the Major Arcana.
This sourcebook gives an overview of these 22
tribes, their representations in the Tarot, and their
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manipulations of history. Their paths to initiation,
their hidden truths, and their occult techniques are
revealed here for players and GMs to use in furnish-
ing the secret world of the Nephilim that lies behind
the veil of mundanity. The Arcana are guides on the
Path for their members, the source of secrets for
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their Initiates, and sometimes obstacles (or even ene-
mies) for other Nephilim. With organization comes
divergence, and with hidden and exclusive Truth
comes rivalry and discomfort with those excluded.
With the creation of the Major Arcana, the Nephilim
have achieved both security and insecurity; truth and
doubt.
It should be noted at the outset that the “stan-
dard” Tarot pack used in the game of Nephilim is the
1910 Rider-Waite Tarot deck, designed by A.E.
Waite and illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith.
Virtually all books on the Tarot advise the reader to
use a deck that she feels comfortable with; if the
Rider-Waite deck is not your cup of tea as GM,
replace it with your own favorite. Unless the GM
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intends to delve more deeply into numerology than
most, the change should be fairly cosmetic.
Metamorphoses in this book are patterned after
the Emotional Trait rules in the Chronicle of the
Awakenings, and the Sorcery rules herein follow
Liber Ka. It should be fairly easy to make the adjust-
ment to the old rules if the GM or players prefer,
since the GM will probably be tinkering with the
NPCs to fit her scenarios and campaign anyway.
GMs are free to change, amplify, twist, pervert,
omit, reverse, or ignore any of the spells, rumors,
Arcane Techniques, modifiers, or additional rules
and concepts presented in Major Arcana. Nobody
else in occultism ever agreed on the Arcana, so it’s a
little late to start enforcing orthodoxy now.
wnicn is quite similar to wnar many rerer ro as me
real world.” Therefore, real organizations, historical
events, people, and places have been used throughout
this sourcebook. When viewed from the Nephilim
angle, they might look a little different. If you don’t
like the way something is portrayed in here, change it!
I i i c t upt niit 2 nen 2 n d wrihhlP in t h e maruins Rnnm
just like actual magicians, you‘ve changed reality with
words. it’s a game, you can do that.
I‘d like to thank Sam Shirley, for saddli
this job; the writers and players on the Nephilim mail-
ing list, especially Shannon, Geoff, Gint, Michael,
Syncline, Doyle, Timothy, Ian, and Ross, who have
been clever enough to give me some neat ideas on
purpose or otherwise; Sheila, my wife, for putting up
with this nonsense and more besides; and A.E. Waite
and Pamela Colman Smith for getting me into all this
in the first place.
Kenneth Hite,
Walpurgisnacht, 1996
 PART ONE

PART1:

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ARCANA

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“These twent3-two cads acquire a personah3 of

e their own: a verp cu~ionspersonalitp. It Wonla be

qnite wrong to sax that the3 represent a complete
universe. Tbep seem to represent certain rather
cuVious bases of the universe. Thep bo not seem
P
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essentia factors in the structnre of the miverse.
Tbep change fvom time tu time in their relation to
cnrrent events.”
-A[eister CvowleB, The Book of Thoth
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Part One gives a general view of what the Arcana

are and what roles they play, both institutionally and
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in the game of Nephilim. It gives part of the history

of the Arcana themselves and a history of the Tarot
deck, which is their reflection in the world of human
occultism. All of these generalities are known to
most Nephilim and to many esoterically active
humans, although many of the specifics would
require Lore rolls, research, or the interception of
cryptically dropped hints to learn.

-- --
 PART ONE

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“... certain i~visiblepowers, to whch those things which are OM earth are committea
to be aisposeb of. EO^ sometimes, the3 b e i ~ gvisible to none a0 a i m OMY jotlrnies

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all OMY busi~ess,are ofteM preseut at battles, aMa, secret helps, a. give the aesirea
smcess to their fvieds; for, at their pleawve, the2 can procwe posperity, ana ilzflict
aavevsit3. IM like manner the3 aistrib~tethese [powers] ilzto move oraers..:’
- Era~cisBarvet, The Maps

The Arcana operate on two levels. Primarily, they are uni- Order, or the best way to sumggle gold into the country
fied methods of seeing the mundane world, the mystical are all questions that a newly Incarnated Nephilim might

Nephilim wishes to become an Initiate of the Arcanum e

world, and Agartha. Arcana are philosophical in nature;
Paths traveled by individual Nephilim. Unless the

(arid not all do; some see Initiation as a distraction or a

detour from true Progress), there is, in general, very little
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pressure to conform to a strict ideology. Some groups,
such as the Sun or Hierophant, hold more dogmatic
views; some, such as the Hanged Man or Moon, self-
select for Nephilim that agree with the Path of that
Arcanum. However, do not think of the Arcana as inter-
changeable bodies to be joined or left at a whim; the
Arcana reflect the spiritual nature of their members. A
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ask members of its fellow Arcanum who have been
Incarnated longer or established networks of human
allies.
For the gamemaster, Arcana are scenario engines; a
campaign can be worked around an individual character’s
Initiatory Quest or can draw the PCs into inter-Arcana
politics. Arcana also serve as a built-in source of dramat-
ic tension and mystical murkiness. For example, the Sun
and Fool have strikingly different notions of Akhenaton’s
legacy. Who is correct? This ceases to become arcane
trivia if the campaign centers around a mystical artifact or
magical treasure from Akhet-Aton and those two Arcana

destructive Nephilim is, by its very nature, a Tower
Nephilim, even if it primarily destroys schools of thought
rather than Templar arsenals.
The second level of the Arcana is their “tribal” nature;
an Arcanum is a built-in group of allies, contacts, like
minds, and fellow-travelers. Their small sizes and great
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are drawn into the action. The Arcana can also add dra-
matic conflict, which can cause potentially distracting
trouble (or roleplaying opportunities) if the PC party
includes serious rivals such as the Magician and the
Tower. In the campaign or in individual scenarios, the
Arcana can be McGuffins, allies, obstacles, red herrings,

dispersion mean that their immediate power is fairly lim-
ited. Even in large cities with relatively large numbers of
Nephilim, many Arcana are incapable of giving a fellow
member anything more than the local occult lay of the
, land and a place to stay for a weekend. Often, other mem-
bers of your Arcanum will also have their own agendas
and little time or inclination to go very far out of their
way. That said, members of an Arcanum are expected to
give reasonable assistance to each other when asked. The
Arcanum thus functions much as the “old boy network”
of the American and English establishments; a source of
contacts, names to drop, pointers to areas of interest.
Think of the Arcana as Very Old Boy Networks, joined by
their spiritual bonds rather than by Yale or Harrow ties.
They can also serve as chains of acquaintance or
occult gossip. The current whereabouts of a mutual
acquaintance, the true nature of a recently encountered
deus ex machina saviors, or frustrating know-it-alls.
Since the stakes are seldom life and death (or even black
and white), inter-Arcana play concentrates on roleplaying
and intrigue rather than on the adrenaline and drama of
Templar gunfights.
join in^ AM Arc~ntrw~
For Nephilim of the first Incarnation, the Major Arcana
are just names and labels, and it is considered very poor
form for an Arcanum to “recruit” newborn Nephilim
immediately. Most Nephilim feel protective of newly
Incarnated Nephilim, and will often introduce them
around to other Nephilim in other Arcana so that the
youngster can see as much of the Nephilim world as pos-
sible. (That said, the more purist Arcana like the Sun or
Justice might not make much effort to introduce an