When the Devil is too busy
(and Death's a bit too much)
they call on me, by name you see,
for my ... special touch.
- -Voltaire, "When You're Evil"
Kobal's Servitors are sociopaths who find dead baby jokes amusing, and dead babies hilarious.
- -In Nomine: Game Master's Guide
Kobal is the Demon Prince of Dark Humor, an Impudite. He began as the Angel of Laughter long ago, before the formation of the Earth. He spends most of his time these days working on a last "joke" that will turn the tide of the War: the ultimate punch line, and God's the sucker.
Dark Humor[]
Oh...hahahahaha...oh, I really shouldn't laugh...heehee...oh that's great. I mean, it's awful, but...you know what I mean, right?
Kobal's Word may not sound so bad at first. It sure sounds scarier to go up against something like Death or Fire than "Dark Humor". This is the first of many perilous opportunities one has to underestimate Kobal.
Humor, viewed as a social factor, is actually quite powerful -- not a light matter at all. One might say that the most basic form of humor is a human responding to a contradiction or absurdity with mirth. This is very effective at spreading and reinforcing social mores and beliefs. The enjoyment a human feels when laughing spurs them to seek humor out, and they will sometimes set their consciences aside in the pursuit of a good snicker.
Being such a powerful social force, humor can easily be turned to sadistic ends. Everyone has heard the difference between "laughing with" and "laughing at". And many times, when someone makes a mistake or chooses poorly, the salt in the wound is how ... funny they seem.
Examples of Dark Humor[]
- An employee sends an email to his boss saying, "I guess we've got this all wrapped up. -- Ted" A little Infernal meddling occurs, and when Ted's boss opens the email, there's a bondage pic just above the signature line. Ted gets called in, insists he has no idea how that happened, is fired without recommendations, and ends up working at Starbucks. Additional Kobal-lolz occur whenever he struggles to explain to someone what happened, and starts blushing.
- Gary Coleman -- The entire life of Gary Coleman. (You just laughed, didn't you?)
- Exploding Whale -- Lolz.
- Encyclopedia Dramatica: Mitchell Henderson -- The life and death of Mitchell Henderson, and his subsequent commemoration as "an hero".
Relations with Other Superiors[]
Kobal adopted Haagenti back when he was just a little runt, and the two often work together now. Of course, Haagenti's tastes in humor run a bit more towards the crude, compared to Kobal's preference for sarcasm and clever wit.
Kobal and Vapula, along with Nybbas, are quickly finding common ground in the internet age.
Asmodeus is a dreary paper-pushing fascist, and Kobal wants nothing to do with him. Any Servitor who could make a laughing stock out of the Game would be almost guaranteed a nice reward, though.
He also bears a long-standing grudge against Kronos; frustrating the forces of Destiny used to be HIS job before that humorless know-it-all barged in. Someone who put one over on Fate himself might draw a rare smile from the Clown Prince of Hell ... or a short lifespan. Hey, no comedy without risk, right?