Since ancient times there have been spirits without bodies who, given the right circumstances can take over the body of a human and use it until it dies, then try to find another body. These spirits are the Nephilim.

Players will become one of five types of Nephilim, Fire, Water, Earth, Air and Moon. Within each of these types are different species of Nephilim. Each type of element or "Ka" has different strong points. The dominant Ka-element of the Nephilim determines its personality. Each Ka-element infers behaviour, character traits, and attitudes, which constitute the personality of the Nephilim. Within each Ka-element the moods manifest as one of two kinds of behaviours. One is primitive, existing close to the raw elemental, or the natural world, and is commonly labelled as being material. The other nature is more intellectual, including many subtle thoughts and attitudes, and is called the spiritual.

The Nine Common types of Nephilim are:
Djinn - material fire
Phoenix - spiritual fire
Triton - material water
Undine - spiritual water
Satyr - material earth
Elf - spiritual earth
Sylph - material air
Angel - spiritual air
Snake - the Moon

Before the sinking of Atlantis, incarnation for a Nephilim meant that it could create a body

structured according to the symbolic image of its own personality. In designing its material form each Nephilim naturally followed the orientation of its dominant Ka-element. Because of the nature of Nephilim, this orientation was concentrated upon either the material or spiritual side.
The creation of this physical shape was a major activity for the pre-fall Atlantean Nephilim during its very long life. But when Atlantean civilization was destroyed, the Nephilim could no longer construct their own bodies, but had to incarnate themselves in human bodies.

The Nephilim has an obvious and overwhelming affect on the Human host. It actually modifies the physical body, and makes it resemble the shapes that the Nephilim used to take before Atlantis. This new shape also mirrors the spiritual life of the Nephilim, for the Nephilim's body must change if it wants to reach Ascendancy.

This material metamorphosis is important for the Nephilim since it gives it the feeling of being flesh and blood as well as spirit. But the metamorphosis can be extremely dangerous, especially when it reaches advanced stages, and perceptive humans can begin to see the changes. The change can turn the host into a stranger even among her own family, and can make her the target of insistent frightened looks from perceptive strangers. In general, however, humans are usually unaware of the physical metamorphosis changes unless the Nephilim behaves blatantly.

During your prelude you will play a human, who will quite probably be inhabited by a Nephilim sometime during the game session