I bought this rpg from a French store by mail. It was 20 Euros, and the shipping cost was more than the book. Though it covers a lot of ground in 80 pages, it amounts (in the end) to a well done quick start for Nephilim: the Revelation, an earlier version of the game. I assume they were going to re-release the game, but that never happened to my knowledge, since 2004. The book offers many things. Though it does present a world of contemporary occult conspiracy, primarily, the world is very much like the one outside your window, but magic is real and "monsters" do exist in secret. You play one of these "monsters." Though there's really very little way to cover up the use of magic, if some Nephilim wants to show out in front of a human being, I assume there is something like the Masquerade in Vampire:tM, but the game does not go into that. Players play magical spirits who take over the bodies of human beings whose presence in the human being creates magical changes to the human's body (getting them closer and closer to a physical manifestation of their "monster" type in the world). Characters can choose to be: Elves, Satyrs, "Serpents" (man-like serpents), Chimera, Djinn, Phoenixes, Tritons, Undines, Sylphs, or even Angels. Characters remember some of their past lives, as they have existed on earth in other bodies before. The past of the earth's mythological creatures is explained by the Nephilim of the past being more "open" about their activities. Character creation is very quickly accomplished. Stats like Not Difficult, Less Difficult, Enough Difficult, <<. . . >>, and Very Difficult (the word "Difficult" can be replaced with Agility, Strength, Endurance, Intelligence, and Seduction--the basic attributes in the game) are easily cross-referenced on a table to get the number on a twenty-sided die that you must roll under to succeed. Nephilim have a special Ka-vision they use to detect things Nephilim (the magical elements -- fire, water, earth, air, or moon that another Nephilim is dominant in & Stasis objects & magical fields). Stasis objects "imprison" / allow a Nephilim to survive between their lives controlling humans. Magical fields exist all over the world--corresponding to fire, water, earth, air, and the moon. Magical powers are also based on a Nephilim's dominant magical field. For instance, a Djinn or a Phoenix produce effects related to the element of Fire. There are three types of Sorcery: Magic (innate elemental powers), Kabbala (summoning beings from other mystical worlds to perform a task for the summoner), and Alchemy (creation of potions, magical materials, etc.). They are well covered, but a long game of Nephilim: Initiation would cover most of these quickly. I, personally, would change the magic system up somewhat, including more examples of each type (at least). Setting the power level of such things would be problematic at best, of course. I do, however, like the system, as it is easy to follow, execute, and ajudicate (especially using the GM screen, included with the book). The simplified rules are a welcome sight, if you've ever tried to run a Nephilim game. Basically, most of the systems (possibly excluding Nephilim: la Revelation) have been rather difficult to put into practice, though I do miss the mechanics for Metamorphoses (explaining how long it takes your Angel character to grow feathers and the like with the other Nephilim). It does include some sample characters and an adventure. However, I think that using about half of the book to accomplish this was a serious waste (with only 80 pages in the whole book). There are nice sections of fiction every now and then that relate well to the topics discussed. They obviously did not have enough room to cover the Selenim (undead nephilim) or the Ar-Kaim, as there was not enough room for that too. And, Nephilim: la Revelation already covers these types of beings. However, they did not include an experience system. This can be ajudicated by any game master, but it's an obvious lack. In closing, ever since I began reading Chaosium's version of Nephilim in English, I have loved this game. I know that it has always seemed to be a "diamond in the rough," but I've always wanted to give it a try. With Nephilim: Initiation, I find that I can now at least consider playing the game. And, I might even want to. The system is pretty easy. It's a little like the Marvel Faserip game, as you compare everything on a chart to get the number of the difficulty to roll. I really appreciated them "dumbing" the game down for me, as I don't think I would even consider playing it with some of the earlier versions. What they made up for in great source material, they lost in their initial game mechanics being so needlessly complicated. This game does lack an experience system, but I think I can establish one of those with little difficulty and game master fiat. The magic rules probably need to be expanded too. But, I'm so glad to finally be presented a real set of rules I can use to run the game. To me, that has been the game's greatest failing. I've always loved the fluff, but the rules were daunting. Until now. Kudos to UbIK and Les heritiers de Babel for writing an excellent quick start / game.