Celestials are beings native to the celestial plane. They include angels, demons, Relievers, Imps, Gremlins, and Familiars. Some say that celestials are descended from ethereal beings, or in fact are ethereal beings with some unique abilities; this theory is not popular in either Heaven or Hell, but is commonly believed in the ethereal Marches.
Celestial Psychology[]
As noted in the entries for demons and angels, celestials often have very eccentric psyches. They fixate readily on ideas and abstract concepts, and tend to view the physical world with similar abstraction. They also tend to be much more selfish or selfless than humans, who tend to wander back and forth within a narrow gray area.
Celestial Abilities[]
All celestials have certain special abilities.
Vessels[]
Celestials generally employ physical forms (called "vessels") on earth. These are physically identical to ordinary humans (or whatever they are), but they do gain some supernatural abilities from their celestial inhabitants. The most obvious is physical abilities: a celestial with 5 Corporeal Forces in the body of a tiny cat can make a teensy little pounce right through a wall.
Other "natural" abilities of vessels include:
- Never sufer from fatigue
- Don't require food or water
- Immune to corporeal disease (but not chemical drugs or poisons)
- Immune to extremes of ambient temperature (barring being shoved into an oven or something)
Supernatural Abilities[]
As for celestials themselves, they can do a few supernatural tricks.
Celestial Form[]
Celestials can adopt their celestial form at any time, albeit with considerable Disturbance if on Earth, and it can move around on any plane. (Moving between the planes is a bit more complicated.) Mortals usually find a celestial form quite hard to see. On the corporeal plane, celestials in celestial form can fly and pass right through physical objects. When a celestial using a vessel switches to celestial form, their vessel vanishes until they return to it.
Essence[]
Celestials can burn Essence to bend the Symphony in various ways. Any roll's target number can be increased by one per unit of Essence burned. Essence also powers Songs and some other abilities. Celestials can freely hand it off to each other, or to other Symphonically-aware individuals, like Soldiers.
Downsides[]
They are some limitations on celestials, however.
Disturbance[]
Celestials meddling with the corporeal world generate Disturbance. Destroying things, or (substantially) harming people and animals, sends the metaphysical pots and pans crashing down all over the kitchen of the universe.
Dissonance and Discord[]
Celestials are closely attuned to some theme in the Symphony, and thus for all their apparent power, in some ways they are more fragile than humans. Celestials can accrue dissonance and Discord, usually by forcing themselves to act against their basic nature. One might say that all celestials are born with an intense "phobia" -- their dissonance condition -- and exposing themselves to it leaves them traumatized.
Detecting Celestials[]
There is no easy way to detect a celestial. Well, okay, one can always whack someone over the head with a wrench* and see if there's Disturbance...but in addition to pissing off the celestial in question (and most Superiors really don't like to hear about brawls started by Three Stooges acts!) if they are in fact human, the inquisitive celestial probably just gave them a concussion or skull fracture. The In Nomine gurus have assembled a list here, which covers pretty much all the methods known to celestials. (Most celestials who've been Earthside would be familiar with at least some of these.)
*: Kniiiife-wrench! Practical and safe.